A natural gas field in Derweze, Turkmenistan was set on fire in 1971, and it has been burning ever since. It is popularly known as “Door to Hell.” Exactly how the crater ignited is not known, and there are many disputed facts regarding this. Some popular theories state that it was intentionally set on fire by Soviet geologists to prevent the spread of methane gas, and it has been burning ever since.
Another theory states that a construction company drilled a hole on a land site in Derweze, but it collapsed during the process and resulted in the formation of a giant crater. This crater started blowing out methane into the air.
Thinking that this could be dangerous, the workers lit fire to the gas presuming that it would soon extinguish. But, to everyone’s surprise, the crater kept on burning and continues to do so even 40 years later. The crater has an area of 5,350 square meters, and its diameter is 69 meters. Its depth is estimated to be around 30 meters.
This natural gas crater was later nicknamed “The Door to Hell.” The Darvaza Gas Crater is a classic example of a good deed gone wrong. The crater continues to blow methane, one of the most dangerous greenhouse gases. Unmeasurable amounts of natural resources are getting wasted in this man-made phenomenon, but nothing can be done! (1, 2)
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7 The Sidoarjo Mud Volcano, Indonesia
The Sidoarjo Mud Volcano
The Sidoarjo Mud Volcano in Java, Indonesia is not a regular mud volcano erupting because of seismic activity, but the result of man’s greed. This volcano was created on a dangerous site in Sidoarjo by the Lapindo Brantas Company.
They were warned several times to stop drilling activities on the site, but they did not pay any heed to the warnings. Their drillings resulted in a 6.3 magnitude earthquake and several aftershocks later on.
After a few days, the drill hole erupted blowing mud 200 meters into the air. Since then, it has been continuously erupting and spewing hot sulphuric mud into the atmosphere. Almost 180,000 cubic meters of mud have been spewed by the hole into the ocean, and this process is expected to continue for the next 30 years.
The Sidoarjo Mud Volcano continues to throw 50,000 cubic meters of mud every day. It is swallowing up homes as it continually expands. This one is a disastrous man-made phenomenon that is causing unmeasurable damage to the environment. (1, 2)
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8 Big Hole, South Africa
Big Hole, South Africa
Seemingly natural, this giant hole is actually man-made and, in fact, one of the largest man-made holes in the world. The Big Hole in Africa is in Kimberly, the biggest diamond city in the world with the richest diamond mines. This hole was initially a diamond mining site.
It was discovered accidentally in 1867 when 15-year-old Erasmus Stephanus Jacobs found a pretty little pebble on his family’s farm in De Kalk, near Hopetown. The pebble was then sent to a geologist in Grahamstown, Dr. William Atherstone, who concluded the pebble as a 21.25-carat diamond. The stone was called “Eureka.”
Then soon, the diamond rush in Africa began and many people flocked to Kimberly and created the largest hand-dug excavation in the world. In 1914, the mining halted here because the hole had already reached a depth of 1,083 meters, and mining any deeper inside would become quite dangerous. Before the Big Hole was closed, almost 14.5 million diamonds were excavated from there. Today, the Big Hole is just a giant hole filled with water.
The land is disputed today and remains unclaimed. It has become just a Big Hole reaping no more treasures as it had once done. The spot remains a popular tourist destination in Africa. (1, 2)
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9 A Shield Around Earth
A huge protective bubble is created around our Earth by humans accidentally. This Earth’s shield is formed due to countless radio communications discharged by our devices. Scientists have installed such devices in space to monitor celestial activities, and they interact with other high-radiation-emitting particles in outer space.
This protective bubble around Earth protects us, earthlings, from harmful solar flares and radiation. One can spot this protective bubble around the Earth from a spacecraft orbiting around our planet.
Luckily, this interplay of human-created technology and nature is in our favor unlike in many of the cases above. This protective bubble also encourages men to continue with their space explorations. (1, 2)
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10 Chuuk Lagoon
Coral growth on the hull of a sunken WWII cargo ship, Fujikawa Maru, at Truk Lagoon.
Located around 1,120 miles from the coast of New Guinea in the Central Pacific lies the man-made wonder, Chuuk Lagoon. This beautiful atoll is surrounded by colorful coral reefs, turtles, sharks, and diverse fish life. This area, considered to be a diver’s paradise, was initially a fleet of Japanese ships that sank during World War II.
Over the years, the shipwrecks became home to beautiful marine life. The shipwrecks have become encrusted with corals and now look like a part of the seabed. An unsuspecting diver may mistake the beauty underneath as natural, but it is in reality, the result of human actions.
The sinking of ships is never good, but in this case, the wrecks have given birth to beautiful marine life and coral-encrusted wonders under the ocean. (Source)
