Most People in the World Know That the Empty

Introduction

Most people in the world know that the Empty

Quarter has more than one name like The Rub’ al Khali

and the place from where there is no return . it is one

of the largest sand desert in the world including

southern Saudi Arabia , and areas of Oman, the United

Arab Emirates and Yemen. one of the most inhospitable

places on earth, and entirely uninhabitable. With

summer temperatures up to nearly 55 degrees at noon,

and dunes taller than the Eiffel Tower — over 330

meters.

Empty Quarter

The Rub' al Khali , which translates as Empty Quarter in English, is one of the largest sand deserts in the world, encompassing most of the southern third of the Arabian Peninsula, including southern Saudi Arabia, and areas of Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. The desert covers some 650,000square kilometers (250,000sqmi) (the area between long. 44°30′ −56°30′E., and lat. 16°30′ −23°00′N), more than the combined land areas of the Netherlands, Belgium, and France and almost the land area of Texas.

Largely unexplored until recently, the desert is 1,000kilometers (620mi) long, and 500kilometers (310mi) wide. Even the Bedouins only skirt the edges of the desert. Nonetheless, tour companies do exist that offer GPS-equipped excursions into the desert. The first documented journeys made by Westerners to the Empty Quarter were those made by Bertram Thomas in 1931 and St. John Philby in 1932. Between 1946 and 1950 Wilfred Thesiger crossed the area several times and mapped large parts of the Empty Quarter and the mountains of Oman.

With summer temperatures up to nearly 55°C (131°F) at noon, and dunes taller than the Eiffel Tower—over 330meters (1,100ft)—the desert may be the most forbidding environment on Earth. However, as nearly everywhere else, life flourishes. Arachnids, rodents and plant life all can be found throughout the Empty Quarter. As an ecoregion, it falls within the Arabian Desert and East Saharo-Arabian xeric shrublands.

Desertification has increased through the millennia. Before desertification made the caravan trails leading across the Rub' al Khali so difficult, the caravans of the frankincense trade crossed now virtually impassable stretches of wasteland, until about AD 300. For example, Iram of the Pillars, a lost city, depended on such trade. More recently, tribal populations were also present in certain parts of the Empty Quarter, with the largest in the Najran region. A few road links were connected with these tribal settlements to the water resource and oil production centers.

Geologically, the Empty Quarter is the second most oil-rich place in the world. Vast oil reserves have been discovered underneath the sand stacks. Sheyba, in the middle of the desert, is a major Arab light crude oil-producing site in Saudi Arabia. In addition, Ghawwar Field, the largest oil field in the world, extends southward into the northernmost parts of the Empty Quarter.

Conclusion

All in all I believe that the Empty Quarter is one

of the biggest desert in the world. Also, it has a

strategic location which is the Middle East. I think

that it is the goal of many and many people to have a

land in it because of its fortunes.

References

http://emptyquarter.files.wordpress.com

http://www.al3ez.net

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rub'_al_Khali