Over 12 kilometers in the heart of the Earth, one and a half times the height of Everest. Where is the deepest well in the world and what are the legends associated with it?
The DEEPEST WELL in the world: access to the CENTER OF THE EARTH or to HELL?
Today we will travel with imagination, from the tales of Jules Verne to Dante’s hell, to talk about the very real Kola well, the deepest in the world, around which numerous legends echo.
# The journey to the deepest well in the world will take us to Russia
First of all, where is the Kola super deep well located? Prepare your gloves, scarf and hat, because we will need warm gear for this trip. In fact, the Kola well is located in Russia, not far from the town of Zapolyarnyj, near the freezing Norway. It all started in 1970, right in the middle of the Kola peninsula, when a group of scientists decided to study the layers of the earth’s crust and, to do this, they decided to dig a very deep well. You’re probably wondering why choose Kola as an excavation site. The choice was not accidental. This area of Russia is characterized by the Baltic shield, which is one of the oldest territories – geologically – on the continent, which was perfect for studying the conformation of the earth’s crust.
# The winner is Kola with its 12,226 meters of depth
The scientific team dug a hole 12,226 meters deep and only 23 centimeters in diameter. The excavation did not reach the desired depth because the temperatures almost doubled those expected, reaching up to 180°. Despite the unforseen event, the hole allowed the collection of important geological data and still holds the record as the deepest well in the world.
An atypical feature of this very deep well? It was drilled for scientific purposes and not for fossil fuel research.
At the moment the hole with the greatest total depth is located on the island of Sakhalin and is the Z-44 Chayvo well, which goes over 12,376 meters into the ground. However, despite deeper holes have been excavated, the Kola well continues to maintain its primacy because it is not only deep but also narrow and perfectly vertical.
# The gateway to hell or to the center of the Earth?
Two legends float around the Kola well: one makes you dream and the other arouses fear. The dark and frightening legend was born when excavators began spreading the rumor that their microphone had recorded the voices of dying souls in pain, as if they had opened the door of hell.
Instead, the second legend revolves around one of the stories of Jules Verne, the famous science fiction writer. He wrote of a fabulous journey inside the earth’s core – so-called journey to the center of the earth – and many people argue that the Kola well is the access point to that underground world that brings to light plants and animals considered extinct by thousands of years.
The first myth was easy to dispel, because at the time there were no microphones capable of withstanding such temperatures. The science-fiction legend resisted because it was based on the manuscript of a man who is still considered a visionary today. Many aficionados of Verne’s writings still continue to insist that this is the long-awaited gateway access to reach a still unexplored world.
Although the world of science reiterate that the center of the Earth is just a gaseous and fiery mass, most people continue to prefer the Vernian version.
The Kola well continues to attract the attention of the whole world amidst records and legends that resist scientific rationality, and Pirandello’s words in this regard leave us some glimmer of hope: reality often surpasses fantasy.
ROSITA GIULIANO
