These wonderful pictures of very aptly named Door To Hell, a fiery crater caused by drilling hard scientific blunder after burning away for over 40 years.
The 230-foot-wide crater, located near the village Derweze Turkmenistan, was named the Door to Hell by local, referring to the eternal flame and boiling mud that can be found inside.
Originally a surface level, the site was recognized by Soviet scientists in 1971 as a good place to spot believed large oil field.
A drilling rig and camp was set up nearby, and, after the Soviets were pleased with the amount of gas sources believed to be on the site, it was agreed that gas from the field begin to be stored.
However, the ground beneath the drilling rig soon to crumble, creating a wide crater believed to be releasing large quantities of methane gas, a potential risk to the nearby village Turkmenistan.
The scientists decided that the most efficient way to solve the problem would be to burn off toxic gases - by doing so, it is expected that all of the gas in the crater is burnt off during the day.
More than four decades later, though, the crater is still raging - and hundreds of tourists flock to visit it every year.
The Karakum Desert , which Derweze is located , is one of the largest gas reserves in the world . Turkmenistan hopes to up its exportation rate to around 75 million cubic meters of gas over the next 20 years .
Will Keeping , a retiree from Buchlyvie , near Stirling , visited the crater last month .
There is no sense in having Door Hell before he visited Turkmenistan , Will , 57 , said on his tour to the crater is one of the hundred most unique places to visit before you die . Intrigued , he decided to ride around the gloomy atmosphere dessert , not knowing what to expect .
Will said : 'During the light of day , I was initially not impressed as it looked like a hole in a vast desert . As we got closer and the glow from inside the Carter became clear , though , I started to notice the size of the crater and wondered how to continue to be able to glow like that .
' As I approached on foot , it became clear that it was a huge crater and inside was like a big open fireplace .
"At first, it appeared to be that it is a natural phenomenon, but the sides of the mouth contradicted that. I can see the bent and rusted remains of a type of metal railings or structure, indicating some sort of disaster having occurred long before.
'I stood there gazing at the mouth, the sheer size and intensity of the fire inside became more and more apparent.
'As the sun began to set, the location slowly transformed from a large, separate fireplace in the middle of the desert toward the center of the attention that dominated the surrounding area - has become more intense glow and lit up place among the heavens above.
'It is impossible not to be drawn into the mouth, something that only dominant over the surrounding area.'
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