select language: DE-AT
DE-BE
DE-CH
DE-DE
EN-AU
EN-CA
EN-GB
EN-IN
EN-NZ
EN-US
ES-AR
ES-ES
ES-MX
FR-BE
FR-CA
FR-FR
IT-IT
JA-JP
NL-BE
NL-NL
PT-BR
ZH-CN
DE-AT
DE-BE
DE-CH
DE-DE
ES-ES
FR-BE
FR-FR
IT-IT
NL-BE
NL-NL
Rub' al Khali, United Arab Emirates
Durable dunes
Most of the United Arab Emirates' 11 million-plus people live in the urban cluster at the nation's northeast corner, including the global cities of Dubai and Abu Dhabi. But here we see a much sleepier sector – the Rub' al Khali, or Empty Quarter. The world's largest erg, the quarter covers 650,000 square kilometres of the lower Arabian Peninsula with countless dunes, many reaching over 240 metres tall. Packed tight and soaked deep down with groundwater, these mountains of sand tend to keep their shape in spite of the fierce desert winds that whip their surface.
Durable dunes
Most of the United Arab Emirates' 11 million-plus people live in the urban cluster at the nation's northeast corner, including the global cities of Dubai and Abu Dhabi. But here we see a much sleepier sector – the Rub' al Khali, or Empty Quarter. The world's largest erg, the quarter covers 650,000 square kilometres of the lower Arabian Peninsula with countless dunes, many reaching over 240 metres tall. Packed tight and soaked deep down with groundwater, these mountains of sand tend to keep their shape in spite of the fierce desert winds that whip their surface.
Packed so tight they rarely shift, some of these dunes extend more than 240 metres high.
© Abstract Aerial Art / Digital Vision / Getty Images 2026-09-11 08:45:51 :