Latest news with #EmptyQuarter
Arab News
24-06-2025
- General
- Arab News
Saudi Arabia's Uruq Bani Ma'arid gains spot on global conservation list
RIYADH: Uruq Bani Ma'arid, one of Saudi Arabia's most ecologically significant protected areas and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has been admitted to the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Green List of Protected and Conserved Areas. The recognition confirms the site's global ecological importance and highlights the Kingdom's growing leadership in conserving arid-land habitats, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Tuesday. Saudi Arabia's inclusion of Uruq Bani Ma'arid follows earlier Green List achievements, notably the Ibex Protected Area and the King Salman bin Abdulaziz Royal Reserve. These milestones reflect sustained progress toward excellence in protected-area management, according to the SPA report. Uruq Bani Ma'arid covers 12,765 sq. km at the western edge of the Empty Quarter — the world's largest continuous sand desert — and harbors the greatest biodiversity in the region. In 2023, it was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its outstanding natural value. The union's Green List sets the global benchmark for effective and equitable protected-area management. To qualify, sites must demonstrate transparent governance, measurable conservation outcomes and meaningful engagement with local stakeholders. Uruq Bani Ma'arid met the criteria through integrated planning, resilient ecological monitoring and habitat restoration programs, the SPA reported. Under the stewardship of the National Center for Wildlife, Uruq Bani Ma'arid has implemented a breeding and reintroduction program for the endangered Arabian oryx. Mohammad Qurban, CEO of the National Center for Wildlife, said: 'Uruq Bani Ma'arid exemplifies what science-guided conservation can achieve in extreme landscapes. Its inclusion on the IUCN Green List reflects our dedication to protecting biodiversity and delivering real conservation impact at both national and global levels.' He added that the milestone supports Saudi Arabia's contribution to the global 30x30 biodiversity target — protecting 30 percent of terrestrial and marine areas by 2030 — and aligns with the Saudi Green Initiative, a core pillar of Vision 2030.
Daily Mail
22-05-2025
- Science
- Daily Mail
Hidden city built 5,000 years ago by lost advanced civilization discovered underneath vast desert
For centuries, the Rub' al-Khali desert near Saudi Arabia and Dubai — known as the Empty Quarter — was dismissed as a lifeless sea of sand. But now, it's revealing an astonishing secret. In 2002, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, ruler of Dubai, spotted unusual dune formations and a large black deposit while flying over the desert. That led to the discovery of Saruq Al-Hadid, an archaeological site rich in remnants of copper and iron smelting, which is now believed to be part of a 5,000-year-old civilization buried beneath the sands. Researchers have now found traces of this ancient society approximately 10 feet beneath the desert surface, hidden in plain sight and long overlooked due to the harsh environment and shifting dunes of the Empty Quarter. The Rub' al-Khali spans more than 250,000 square miles, making it the world's largest expanse of continuous sand. This discovery brings fresh life to the legend of a mythical city, believed to have been swallowed by the desert as punishment from the gods. Moreover, people believed the Empty Quarter desert hid a lost city called Ubar. According to legend, Ubar was buried beneath the sand after being destroyed — either by a natural disaster or, as some stories say, by a god punishing its wicked residents. T.E. Lawrence, the British officer and writer famous for his role in the Arab Revolt during World War I, called Ubar the 'Atlantis of the Sands.' He described it as a city 'of immeasurable wealth, destroyed by God for arrogance, swallowed forever in the sands of the Rub' al-Khali desert.' Now, cutting-edge science may be catching up to ancient myth. Researchers from Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi employed Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) technology to penetrate the desert's surface, a tool that allows scientists to peer beneath the dunes without disturbing them. SAR works by sending out pulses of energy and measuring how much bounces back. In this case, archaeologists combined SAR data with high-resolution satellite images from WorldView-3 to scan beneath the desert sands at Saruq Al-Hadid. The radar detected buried structures and revealed clear signs of metal production, artifacts, and layers of animal bones in what archaeologists call midden deposits. By analyzing the radar data with advanced machine learning algorithms, researchers could identify patterns and shapes that pointed to ancient human activity. This method allowed them to uncover parts of the lost city. The findings suggest a complex, interconnected society that thrived in the region thousands of years ago. Researchers identified previously unknown settlements and roadways, which are strong indicators of long-term habitation and organized civilization. Layers at the site show bedrock, sand dunes, and patches of gypsum, with plenty of artifacts, ancient metal waste, and animal bones found throughout. SAR technology — when combined with AI — is increasingly becoming a game-changer for archaeological surveys, especially in environments where traditional excavation is nearly impossible. 'The case study of the Saruq Al-Hadid site illustrates the potential of these technologies to enhance archaeological surveys and contribute to heritage conservation efforts,' according to the research published in the journal. To validate the remote sensing data, researchers compared it with existing archaeological records and conducted field checks. The findings were accurate enough to prompt action from Dubai Culture, the government body overseeing the site. Excavations have now been approved in the newly identified areas. 'These regions remain largely unexplored, yet we know they hold cultural history,' Francis said. While little is currently known about the people who lived there 5,000 years ago, the discovery is already transforming our understanding of early civilizations in the Arabian Peninsula. The Arabian Desert has been inhabited since the early Pleistocene, with Neolithic and Paleolithic tools found in the southwest Rub' al-Khali. Bedouin nomads adapted to desert life, focusing on camel herding, date farming, and oral storytelling — cultural practices that echo the resilience of ancient desert societies. Despite its current hyper-arid conditions, the region experienced periods of increased humidity between 6,000 and 5,000 years ago, forming shallow lakes due to significant rainfall events. These lakes supported diverse ecosystems, including flora, fauna, plants and algae — all crucial clues in painting a fuller picture of life in what was once thought uninhabitable. With each pass of the radar and layer of sand peeled back by science, the Empty Quarter is proving it was never truly empty.
