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Ariana Baio
Mar 03, 2024
What If You Drilled a Hole Through Earth?
Have you ever wondered what the deepest point of Earth sounds like? Well, an urban legend might say it sounds like hell.
The deepest artificially dug hole on Earth is the Kola Superdeep Borehole SG-3 which was dug at 12.262 km (7.61 miles) in 1989.
Located in the Pechengsky District of Russia near the Norway border, the borehole was part of the Soviet Union’s project to drill as deep into the Earth’s Crust as possible.
The Soviet Union successfully dug to the deepest point they could before they were forced to stop because their equipment was melting.
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And at the time it was considered an incredible feat of science as geologists were able to determine what the Earth’s crust contained at 12.262 km.
However, for some, it was a terrifying leap into possibly reaching “hell.”
\u201cThis is the cap of the Kola Superdeep Borehole.\n\nThey reached 40,111 feet of depth in 1989, after nearly two decades of drilling.\n\nOne of the deepest drill holes in the world.\n\nIt was so unexpectedly hot the drilling had to stop as drill bits were melting.\u201d— Brian Roemmele (@Brian Roemmele) 1637382540
So much so, that tabloids claimed scientists at the drilling sight heard strange sounds coming from the borehole, leading them to lower a microphone down.
Apparently, it picked up on some recorded horrifying sounds which were described as those coming from “hell.”
According to YouTube videos that have reposted the supposed theory, the recording sounds like people screaming in agony and pain.
However, the supposed sounds of hell that were found at the deepest part of the Earth are only an urban myth created to generate buzz around the borehole.
Not only were there no recording devices at the site of the drilling, a microphone likely would not have been able to withstand the heat of 180 C° (356° F).
But scientists and geologists did make some interesting other discoveries, like deep parts of the Earth's crust were saturated with water, and microscopic plankton fossils were found six km below the surface.
Although there were plans to continue the project, funding ceased in 1995.
Thus, the Kola Superdeep Borehole SG-3 has remained the largest vertical artificially dug hole - and has no relation to hell.
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