Rub al-Khali's Desert Scene in Saudi Arabia is Both Beautiful and Fearful!

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The Fearful Beauty of Rub al-Khali!

Rub al-Khali means "Empty Quarter". Fearful beauty could possibly impress a person who sees this desert. It is the world's largest uninterrupted sand sea. Covering 650,000 square kilometres, Rub 'al-Khali is almost the size of Texas. It is one of the most extreme environments on the planet. Most of the desert lies in Saudi Arabia and the rest spread into Yemen, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.

Here is a short article about the Empty Quarter, some people call Mars on Earth.. If you found it useful, please share it. If you know more information about it, or if you had seen the fearful beauty of beautiful Rub 'al-Khali, use the form at the bottom of the page to write about it. Thank you.

Rub al-Khali's Desert Scene in Saudi Arabia

For several centuries, proud Bedouin communities have been the only people with the skills to survive in Rub al-Khali's wild desert. In general, they found it enjoyable to lead such life in the desert.

However, some Bedouin have now settled in cities, while others still maintain traditional nomadic lives in tents. Those are very simple people, who love their environment and have sympathy enjoying social relations with each other out of the noise of the crowded cities.

Saudi Bedouin live there on meat and milk from their stock of sheep, goats and camels. They use their dromedaries for transport. Some of them only get out of there to get into small and big pilgrimage, (Omra and Haj).

There are no permanent human settlements in the Rub 'al-Khali, and few people have ever crossed the desert. In summer, temperatures reach over 50º C, making it one of the hottest and driest places in the world.

Over time, wind patterns have shaped the sand dunes. The sand dunes reach heights of 300 meters. The winds have created also a surreal landscape that looks like Mars on Earth.

Even in this harsh climate, life flourishes. The vegetation, which mostly consists of scattered herbs, shrubs and weeds provide Bedouin's livestock with food.

Recently, the science expeditions have identified 31 new plant species and varieties and 24 species of birds. This has led the researchers to rename the Empty Quarter "The Valuable Quarter".

The delicate ecosystem of the Arabian Desert is particularly vulnerable to climate change. Even a small temperature increase will lead to increased evaporation, which will reduce surface moisture, and overload the already scarce water resources.

At the end of this century, average annual temperatures are projected to increase by 4-5º C, which could wipe out the already scarce vegetation and endanger the remaining Bedouin societies.

Have you been in Rub 'al-Khali or any beautiful place in Saudi Arabia? Do you know more information about Saudi Bedouin? Use the form below to share it on this website. I invite Saudi people to write about their fearful beauty in Rub al-Khali, Mars on Earth.

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