Rub' al Khali (Arabian Empty Quarter) sand dunes imaged by Terra (EOS AM-1).jpg
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The Rub' al KhaliOther standardized transliterations include: / . The ' is the assimilated Arabic definite article, ', which can also be transliterated as '. (; ar, ٱلرُّبْع ٱلْخَالِي (), the "Empty Quarter") is the sand
desert A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...
( erg) encompassing most of the southern third of the
Arabian Peninsula The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate ...
. The desert covers some (the area of long. 44°30′−56°30′E, and lat. 16°30′−23°00′N) including parts of Saudi Arabia, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. It is part of the larger Arabian Desert.


Description


Terrain

The desert is long, and wide. Its surface elevation varies from in the southwest to around sea level in the northeast. The terrain is covered with sand
dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, f ...
s with heights up to , interspersed with gravel and gypsum plains. The sand is of a reddish-orange color due to the presence of feldspar. There are also brackish salt flats in some areas, such as the Umm al Samim area on the desert's eastern edge. Ali Al-Naimi reports that the sand dunes don't drift. He goes on to say,
Sand blows off the surface, of course, but the essential shape of the dunes remains intact, probably due to the moisture leaching up into the base of the dunes from the surrounding sabkhas.


Lake beds

Along the middle length of the desert there are a number of raised, hardened areas of calcium carbonate, gypsum,
marl Marl is an earthy material rich in carbonate minerals, clays, and silt. When hardened into rock, this becomes marlstone. It is formed in marine or freshwater environments, often through the activities of algae. Marl makes up the lower part o ...
, or clay that were once the site of shallow lakes. These lakes existed during periods from 6,000 to 5,000 years ago and 3,000 to 2,000 years ago. The lakes are thought to have formed as a result of "cataclysmic rainfall" similar to present-day monsoon rains and most probably lasted for only a few years. However, lakes in the Mundafen area in the southwest of the Rub' al Khali show evidence of lasting longer, up to 800 years, due to increased runoff from the Tuwaiq Escarpment. Evidence suggests that the lakes were home to a variety of flora and fauna. Fossil remains indicate the presence of several animal species, such as hippopotamus, water buffalo, and long-horned cattle. The lakes also contained small snails,
ostracods Ostracods, or ostracodes, are a class of the Crustacea (class Ostracoda), sometimes known as seed shrimp. Some 70,000 species (only 13,000 of which are extant) have been identified, grouped into several orders. They are small crustaceans, typical ...
, and when conditions were suitable,
freshwater clams Freshwater bivalves are one kind of freshwater mollusc, along with freshwater snails. They are bivalves that live in fresh water as opposed to salt water, which is the main habitat type for bivalves. The majority of species of bivalve molluscs ...
. Deposits of calcium carbonate and opal phytoliths indicate the presence of plants and algae. There is also evidence of human activity dating from 3,000 to 2,000 years ago, including chipped flint tools, but no actual human remains have been found.


Climate

The region is classified as "
hyper-arid A region is arid when it severely lacks available water, to the extent of hindering or preventing the growth and development of plant and animal life. Regions with arid climates tend to lack vegetation and are called xeric or desertic. Most a ...
", with annual precipitation generally less than , and daily mean relative humidity of about 52% in January and 15% in June–July. Daily maximum temperatures average in July and August, reaching peaks of . The daily minimum average is in January and February, although frosts have been recorded. Daily extremes of temperature are considerable.


Biodiversity

Fauna includes arachnids (e.g. scorpions) and
rodents Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are nat ...
, while plants live throughout the Empty Quarter. As an ecoregion, the Rub' al Khali falls within the Arabian Desert and East Saharo-Arabian xeric shrublands. The
Asiatic cheetah The Asiatic cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus venaticus'') is a critically endangered cheetah subspecies currently only surviving in Iran. It once occurred from the Arabian Peninsula and the Near East to the Caspian region, Transcaucasus, Kyzylkum D ...
s, once widespread in Saudi Arabia, are regionally extinct from the desert.


Oil

The
Shaybah Shaybah, also called as Zararah, is a settlement dominated by a major crude oil production oil site, the Shaybah oil field, in Saudi Arabia, located approximately from the northern edge of the Rub' Al-Khali ("Empty Quarter") desert. It is about ...
oil field was discovered in 1968. South Ghawar, the largest oil field in the world, extends southward into the northernmost parts of the Empty Quarter.


Road

A road between Oman and Saudi Arabia, which goes through the Empty Quarter, was completed in September 2021.


History

Desertification Desertification is a type of land degradation in drylands in which biological productivity is lost due to natural processes or induced by human activities whereby fertile areas become increasingly arid. It is the spread of arid areas caused by ...
has increased through recent millennia. Before desertification made the
caravan Caravan or caravans may refer to: Transport and travel *Caravan (travellers), a group of travellers journeying together **Caravanserai, a place where a caravan could stop *Camel train, a convoy using camels as pack animals *Convoy, a group of veh ...
trails leading across the Rub' al Khali so difficult, the caravans of the
frankincense Frankincense (also known as olibanum) is an aromatic resin used in incense and perfumes, obtained from trees of the genus ''Boswellia'' in the family Burseraceae. The word is from Old French ('high-quality incense'). There are several species o ...
trade crossed now virtually impassable stretches of wasteland, until about 300 AD. It has been suggested that Ubar or Iram, a
lost city A lost city is an urban settlement that fell into terminal decline and became extensively or completely uninhabited, with the consequence that the site's former significance was no longer known to the wider world. The locations of many lost citi ...
, region or people, depended on such trade. The archaeological remains include a fortification/administration building, walls and bases of circular pillars. The traces of camel tracks, unidentifiable on the ground, appear in satellite images.


People

Today the inhabitants of the Empty Quarter are members of various local tribes – for example, the
Al Murrah The Al Murrah ( ar, آل مرة) (singular 'Al Marri)' is an Arab tribe descended from the well-known Banu Yam tribe. They reside in countries such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain and Wadi Amad of Yemen. Historically, ...
tribe has the largest area mainly based between Al-Ahsa and Najran. The Banu Yam and Banu Hamdan (in Yemen and the Najran region of southern Saudi Arabia), and the Bani Yas (in the United Arab Emirates). A few road links connect these tribal settlements to the area's water resources and oil production centers.


Expeditions

The first documented journeys by non-resident explorers were made by British explorers Bertram Thomas and
St. John Philby Harry St John Bridger Philby, CIE (3 April 1885 – 30 September 1960), also known as Jack Philby or Sheikh Abdullah ( ar, الشيخ عبدالله), was a British Arabist, adviser, explorer, writer, and Colonial Office intelligence officer. ...
in the early 1930s. Between 1946 and 1950, Wilfred Thesiger crossed the area several times and mapped large parts of the Empty Quarter including the mountains of Oman, as described in his 1959 book ''
Arabian Sands ''Arabian Sands'' is a 1959 book by explorer and travel writer Wilfred Thesiger. The book focuses on the author's travels across the Empty Quarter of the Arabian Peninsula between 1945 and 1950. It attempted to capture the lives of the Bedu pe ...
''. In June 1950, a US Air Force expedition crossed the Rub' al Khali from Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, to central Yemen and back in trucks to collect specimens for the Smithsonian Institution and to test desert survival procedures. In 1999, Jamie Clarke became the first Westerner to cross the Empty Quarter of Arabia in fifty years. His team of six, guided by three Bedouin, spent 40 days crossing the desert with a caravan of 13 camels. On 25 February 2006, a scientific excursion organized by the Saudi Geological Survey began to explore the Empty Quarter. The expedition consisted of 89 environmentalists, geologists, and scientists from Saudi Arabia and abroad. Various types of fossilized creatures as well as
meteorites A meteorite is a solid piece of debris from an object, such as a comet, asteroid, or meteoroid, that originates in outer space and survives its passage through the atmosphere to reach the surface of a planet or moon. When the original object en ...
were discovered in the desert. The expedition discovered 31 new plant species and plant varieties, as well as 24 species of birds that inhabit the region, which fascinated scientists as to how they have survived under the harsh conditions of the Empty Quarter. On 4 February 2013, a South African team including Alex Harris, Marco Broccardo, and David Joyce became the first people to cross the border close to Oman of the Empty Quarter unsupported and on foot, in a journey which started in Salalah and lasted 40 days, eventually ending in Dubai. The team only made use of three water stops along the journey, and pulled a specially designed cart which housed all the supplies necessary for the entire expedition. In 2013, British adventurer Alistair Humphreys released his first documentary film, Into the Empty Quarter, documenting his walk through the Empty Quarter desert with Leon McCarron. In 2013, from 18 February to 28 March, South Korean explorer Young-Ho Nam led a team (Agustin Arroyo Bezanilla, Si-Woo Lee) on a crossing through the Empty Quarter on foot from
Salalah, Oman Salalah ( ar, صَلَالَة, Ṣalālah) is the capital and largest city of the southern Omani governorate of Dhofar. Its population in 2009 was about 197,169. Salalah is the third-largest city in the Sultanate of Oman, and the largest cit ...
, to Liwa Oasis in the UAE Emirate of
Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area. ...
. The crossing was performed with permission from the governments of Oman and UAE. Dewan Ruler's Representative for Western Region, Emirate of Abu Dhabi recognized it as the world's first on-foot crossing of the Empty Quarter following the border of Oman and ending in UAE. In 2018, the first all female walking expedition named "her faces of change" led by British Janey McGill who was accompanied by the first Omani women in modern times to walk the Oman Empty Quarter, Baida Al Zadjali and Atheer Al Sabri, set off on the 22nd of December 2018 after receiving formal approval from the government of Oman. The team was supported by two cars for supplies driven by Tariq Al Zadjali (Omani) and Mark Vause-Jones (British) and filmmaker Matthew Milan from the United States of America. The expedition started from Al Hashman in the Dohafar Governate of Oman crossing through Burkana, Maqshin, and Al Sahma in Al Wusta Region continuing through Abu Al Tabool, Um Al Sameem ending at Ibri fort in Al Dhahira region of Oman. The total distance walked by the team was 758 km in 28 days ending the expedition on 18.01.2019. In 2018, Deidre O'Leary and Kyle Knight crossed the Rub' al Khali from South (the Saudi-Omani boarder) to North (the Saudi-UAE boarder) on foot. This was the first known crossing within Saudi Arabia from south-north on foot through the highest sand dunes of the Rub Al' Khali. The pair crossed 300 km in 9 days 12 hours and 59m minutes. In 2020, Italian extreme desert explorer Max Calderan completed Rub' al Khali exploration on foot for the first time ever from west to east. He crossed in 18 days, crossing the widest area of Rub' al Khali from west to east.


In fiction

* Walter Farley's novel ''The Young Black Stallion'' (1989) is set partially in Rub' Al Khali. * Josephine Tey's novel ''The Singing Sands'' (1952) investigates the murder of a young man who believes he has discovered the fabled city of Wabar while flying over the Rub' Al Khali. *
Carl Barks Carl Barks (March 27, 1901 – August 25, 2000) was an American cartoonist, author, and painter. He is best known for his work in Disney comic books, as the writer and artist of the first Donald Duck stories and as the creator of Scrooge McDuck ...
wrote ''McDuck of Arabia'' in 1965, an
Uncle Scrooge ''Uncle Scrooge'' (stylized as ''Uncle $crooge'') is a Disney comic book series starring Scrooge McDuck ("the richest duck in the world"), his nephew Donald Duck, and grandnephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie, and revolving around their adventures in Du ...
comic book in which Scrooge and his nephews search for the "lost gold mine of the Queen of Sheba" in the Rub' al Khali. * Tim Powers' 2001 novel '' Declare'' contains scenes in the Rub' al Khali, as well as mentioning St. John Philby's expedition to the same. * The
Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area. ...
section of the ''Rub' al-Khali'' was used in location shooting for the desert planet
Jakku Jakku is a fictional desert planet in the ''Star Wars'' universe, first featured in the 2015 film ''The Force Awakens''. Remote, lawless, and inhospitable, it is the homeworld of Star Wars sequel trilogy, sequel trilogy protagonist Rey (Star Wars ...
in the 2015 film '' Star Wars: The Force Awakens''. * In the video game '' 80 Days'', the desert is home to a legendary inventor who can help Passepartout to travel onwards. * In
Nelson DeMille Nelson Richard DeMille (born August 23, 1943) is an American author of action adventure and suspense novels. His novels include '' Plum Island'', '' The Charm School'', and '' The Gold Coast''. DeMille has also written under the pen names Jack ...
's 2012 best-seller, ''The Panther'', U.S. agents hunt down a terrorist to Rub' al Khali, and main character John Corey jokes that "The Empty Quarter" isn't a great name if promoting tourism. * Rub' al Khali is one of the settings for the PlayStation 3 video game '' Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception'', in which protagonist Nathan Drake searches for the Iram of the Pillars through multiple chapters. * The Empty Quarter plays an important role in '' Clive Barker's Jericho'', and in his novel ''
Weaveworld ''Weaveworld'' is a 1987 dark fantasy novel by English writer Clive Barker. It is about a magical world that is hidden inside a tapestry, known as the Fugue, to safeguard it from both inquisitive humans and hostile supernatural foes. Two norm ...
''. * It serves as the site of Machine City, Zero-One, in the ''Matrix'' series. * Gerald Seymour's novel ''Unknown Soldier'' is almost entirely set in the Rub' al Khali. * Jack Higgins sets much of the action in his novels ''Edge of Danger'' and ''
Midnight Runner ''Midnight Runner'' is a novel by Jack Higgins Henry "Harry" Patterson (27 July 1929 – 9 April 2022), commonly known by his pen name Jack Higgins, was a British author. He was a best-selling author of popular thrillers and espionage n ...
'' in the Empty Quarter. * Much of the SIGMA Force book '' Sandstorm'' by James Rollins takes place in the Empty Quarter. * The Empty Quarter serves as the setting of the fictional "Ocean of Fire" horse race in the 2004 film '' Hidalgo''. * In the
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese light novel series '' The Familiar of Zero'', Rub' al Khali is thought to be the place of origin of the main character, Hiraga Saito. * In Daniel Easterman's second novel, ''The Seventh Sanctuary'', it is the location of the lost city of Iram, where the eponymous seventh sanctuary is situated. * It is the site of Hammond Innes's novel ''The Doomed Oasis''. Innes traveled to Saudi Arabia to research for this book. * Rub' al Khali is shown in the PlayStation 3 video games ''
Ninja Gaiden 3 is a 2012 action adventure hack and slash game developed by Team Ninja and published by Tecmo Koei. It is the sequel to ''Ninja Gaiden II'' and was released worldwide for the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360 in March. An updated version titled ...
'' and '' Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge'', in which protagonist Ryu Hayabusa fights in the second day of his quest. * The Rub' al-Khali is referenced in '' Fallout 4'' by Jack Cabot as the location of an ancient city where his father found an artifact created by an intelligent predecessor to humans. * The Rub' al-Khali is the location of the Jinn city of Irem in G. Willow Wilson's fantasy novel ''Alif the Unseen'' where part of the story takes place. * The Empty Quarter is a pass location in '' Runic Games action role-playing game '' Torchlight II''. It connects Zeryphesh to the Salt Barrens in game's Act II. * The characters of '' Men in Black: International'' create a huge canyon in the Empty Quarter by test-firing an alien weapon. * In the novel '' Jumper: Griffin's Story'', Griffin O'Conner, the protagonist, visits the Quarter of Emptiness to practice his "Jumping" ability, and regularly "Jumps" there to escape danger. * In the 2021 science fiction film ''
Dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, f ...
'', director
Denis Villeneuve Denis Villeneuve (; born October 3, 1967) is a Canadian filmmaker. He is a four-time recipient of the Canadian Screen Award (formerly Genie Award) for Best Direction, winning for '' Maelström'' in 2001, '' Polytechnique'' in 2009, ''Incendies ...
used locations in the Rub' al Khali in Abu Dhabi for scenes of the desert planet Arrakis.


Additional images

File:Ar Rub’ al Khali Sand Sea, Arabian Peninsula.JPG, Astronaut photograph highlighting a part of ''Ar-Rub' al-Khali'' near its south-eastern margin, in the Wusta Governorate of Oman File:Rub al khalid sunset nov 07.JPG, Sunset in Saudi Arabia


See also

* Ad-Dahna Desert *
Ramlat Khaliya Ramlat Khaliya (Arabic: رملات خالية) is the first border checkpoint to have been established on the Oman–Saudi Arabia border. It is formally known as ''Ramlat Khaliya entry point'' on the Omani side of the border and Rub Al-Khali entr ...
*
Rub' al Khali Basin The Rub' al Khali Basin () or / Basin, Arabic language, Arabic for "Empty Quarter Basin", is a major endorheic basins, endorheic sedimentary basin of approximately in southern Saudi Arabia, northeastern Yemen, southeastern Oman and southeastern ...
*
Sharqiya Sands The Sharqiya Sands ( ar, ٱلرِّمَال ٱلشَّرْقِيَّة, Ar-Rimāl Ash-Sharqiyyah, formerly known as Wahiba Sands ( or )) is a region of desert in Oman, The region was named for the Bani Wahiba tribe.Alsharan, 615. Divided between t ...
in Oman


Notes


References


External links


Lost city under the Rub' Al-Khali
Saudi Life.
Rub' al-Khali
Encyclopædia Britannica

National Geographic, May 2005 (interactive edition) (archived) {{DEFAULTSORT:Rub' Al Khali Arabian Peninsula Deserts of Oman Deserts of Saudi Arabia Deserts of the United Arab Emirates Deserts of Yemen Ergs Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia Najd