Photograph: George Verschoor/National Geographic Channels The crater has become a minor tourist attraction in Turkmenistan, though Kourounis says he didn't have any trouble with crowds of people turning up to watch him. Only a few "tourist outfits" and a couple of people with camels passed by."Once you're there – if you can find the place – you can drive up, get out of your car, walk over to the edge, and jump right in, if you want," he says. "The choice is yours. And I'm so far the only person who has actually done that".
Photograph: George Verschoor/National Geographic Channels Kourounis compared his experience of descending into the pit with what it might feel like to land on another planet. He describes it as a "coliseum of fire" made up of thousands of small flames, which together sound as loud as a jet engine.
Photograph: George Verschoor/National Geographic Channels "You feel very, very small and very vulnerable in a place like that," says Kourounis.
Flying over fire Kourounis and the team were happy with the results of their expedition, and believe it may even help to inform potential space missions in the future searching for signs of life outside of our solar system.
"We did find some bacteria living at the bottom that are very comfortable living in those high temperatures, and the most important thing was that they were not found in any of the surrounding soil outside of the crater," he says. "Outside of our solar system, there are planets that do resemble the conditions inside this pit, and [knowing that] can help us expand the number of places where we can confidently start looking for life outside of our solar system."
Photograph: George Verschoor/National Geographic Channels Turkmenistan is one of the most isolated countries in the world, yet its fledgling tourism industry hopes to capitalise on crater as an attraction for thrillseekers. Because it’s not fenced off, visitors can stand right on the edge of the crater, despite the safety hazards.
Photograph: George Verschoor/National Geographic Channels
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Photograph: George Verschoor/National Geographic Channels Kourounis compared his experience of descending into the pit with what it might feel like to land on another planet. He describes it as a "coliseum of fire" made up of thousands of small flames, which together sound as loud as a jet engine. Photograph: George Verschoor/National Geographic Channels "You feel very, very small and very vulnerable in a place like that," says Kourounis.Flying over fire Kourounis and the team were happy with the results of their expedition, and believe it may even help to inform potential space missions in the future searching for signs of life outside of our solar system.
"We did find some bacteria living at the bottom that are very comfortable living in those high temperatures, and the most important thing was that they were not found in any of the surrounding soil outside of the crater," he says. "Outside of our solar system, there are planets that do resemble the conditions inside this pit, and [knowing that] can help us expand the number of places where we can confidently start looking for life outside of our solar system."
Photograph: George Verschoor/National Geographic Channels Turkmenistan is one of the most isolated countries in the world, yet its fledgling tourism industry hopes to capitalise on crater as an attraction for thrillseekers. Because it’s not fenced off, visitors can stand right on the edge of the crater, despite the safety hazards. Photograph: George Verschoor/National Geographic Channels View the original article here
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