Aeolioammochronology and the Sand Dunes of the Rub' al Khali (Empty Quarter): A Unique Paleoenvironmental Archive in the Arabian Desert

Volume 10, Issue 1, February 2026     |     PP. 29-39      |     PDF (330 K)    |     Pub. Date: April 21, 2026
DOI: 10.54647/geosciences170375    7 Downloads     52 Views  

Author(s)

Ammar Khammash, Khammash architect company, 11181, Amman, Jordan.
Mahmoud Abbas, Khammash architect company, 11181, Amman, Jordan; Université Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne, UMR Archéologie et Sciences de l’Antiquité ArScAn, équipe Archéologies environnementales, Nanterre, France

Abstract
The sand dunes of the Rub' al Khali (Empty Quarter) preserve a key archive of environmental change in Arabia, a critical region along routes of human dispersal out of Africa. This mini-review evaluates the principal dating techniques applied to constrain the timing of dune formation, including optically stimulated luminescence (OSL), radiocarbon dating of interdune deposits, and U–Th dating of regional archives. We also discuss an emerging chronological framework—aeolioammochronology—as an innovative approach for dating aeolian sand bodies. Integrating multiple dating methods enables the construction of more robust chronologies of sediment deposition and landscape evolution across the dune field, while reducing uncertainties inherent to single techniques. Establishing precise timelines for phases of dune accumulation and stabilization is essential for linking desert dynamics to glacial–interglacial climate cycles and for assessing when Arabia functioned as either a barrier or corridor for Homo sapiens dispersing into Eurasia.

Keywords
Rub' al Khali, aeolioammochronology, paleoenvironmental reconstruction, hyper-arid regions, Arabia

Cite this paper
Ammar Khammash, Mahmoud Abbas, Aeolioammochronology and the Sand Dunes of the Rub' al Khali (Empty Quarter): A Unique Paleoenvironmental Archive in the Arabian Desert , SCIREA Journal of Geosciences. Volume 10, Issue 1, February 2026 | PP. 29-39. 10.54647/geosciences170375

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