Turkmenistan
Sand Origin
Behind Pharmacy #1, central Ashgabat
Local Sand Trivia
In the sand-dunes in the Karakum Desert a giant crater, Darvaza Crater, alias ”the Door to Hell” relentlessly burns. The Karakum desert that means Black Sand in the local language covers about 70 % of Turkmenistan. When drilling for oil a natural gas chamber was hit. To prevent methane gas from affecting the surrounding it was set on fire. That was 1971. The crater still burns to this day making it an attraction. Spiders can apparently be seen diving into the crater, lured by the light.
