In the northeast of Siberia, a vast area of land appears to have caved in, revealing layers of karst that look almost unearthly.
This is known as the Batagay (or Batagaika) crater – although it’s not actually a crater at all, as it wasn’t caused by a meteorite impact. It’s what some scientists call a megaslump: a type of landslide that occurs when large amounts of permafrost melts and thaws.
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The Batagay crater – sometimes referred to as the ‘Gateway to Hell’ – began to form after deforestation occurred in the Sakha Republic in the 1950s and 1960s. With no shelter from the tree canopy, the permafrost began to melt – ancient ground that had previously stayed below 0°C.
The growing Gateway to Hell
The Batagay crater is the world’s largest megaslump and is rapidly increasing. Satellite images from the 1960s show it as a gully, but the U.S Geological Survey states that it now covers around 81 hectares.
It’s thought to be 800 metres wide, 50 metres deep and 1 kilometre long.
In comparison, Arizona’s Meteor Crater measures 1,300 metres at its widest point.
The area of the Batagay crater has increased by three times from 1991–2018, with the fastest expansion occurring between 2010-2014.
According to a 2024 study, the megaslump has mobilised 35 million m3 of ground volume since the 1990s.
As the gully first began to form, it’s likely that the permafrost thawed even quicker as more of it began to be exposed. The permafrost becomes a texture similar to wet mud, slumps, and leaves behind the rock-like formations of thermokarst.
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Permafrost thaws and bacteria break down the organic matter inside, releasing large amounts of stored carbon into the atmosphere as greenhouse gases. The crater is estimated to release 4,000–5,000 tons of carbon per year.
This creates a positive feedback loop, as these greenhouse gases warm the planet, which then leads to more permafrost thawing.
As the permafrost has melted, it has unearthed prehistoric specimens. In 2018, an extinct species of horse (Equus lenensis) was discovered, containing the oldest liquid blood on record.
And in 2024, a 50,000-year-old baby mammoth was uncovered. At the time, it was noted for being the world’s best-preserved mammoth carcass.
