A spectacular, fiery volcanic crater has been discovered in
the western hills of Urumqi, in western China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous
region, CCTV's Sina Weibo reported.Burning away at a sizzling 792 degrees Celsius, steam rises from the incandescent, 150cm-wide crater, which has no visible bottom.
"The ash could be seen rising from the volcanic crater
all the time since I came here three years ago," said a worker at a nearby
construction site.The strange sight has been dubbed the 'Gateway to Hell' by local netizens.
The intense heat and bright orange glow of the hole led to it being nicknamed the "Gateway to Hell", a similar moniker to the "Door to Hell" natural gas fire in Turkmenistan which has been burning continuously for over 40 years.
It is in fact caused by the combustion of an underground coal bed, according to the report.
A warning sign has been placed around the crater to alert people to keep away.
This isn't actually the first time a pit like this has opened up in the region either, especially given that the area had once been home to an active coal mine back in the 1970s.
This one however is unlikely to be around for much longer as
concerns over fumes emenating from the hole have prompted authorities to begin
efforts to seal it off.
"The air blasting out of the hole is so hot, that if you hold a branch
near to it it bursts into flames," said geologist Hu Tan.
Source: China News
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