This book describes in detail numerous geological sites throughout the mountains of Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in Eastern Arabia. The region is well known for its oil and gas reserves in the desert interior, and Permian-Mesozoic shelf carbonates exposed in the mountains of the Musandam peninsula, Jebel al-Akhdar and Saih Hatat, where deep wadi canyons provide impressive three-dimensional views into the crust. The region has numerous globally important geological sites, including the world's largest and best-exposed ophiolite complex, the Semail Ophiolite, which is a vast thrust sheet of Cretaceous ocean crust and upper mantle emplaced onto the Arabian continental margin. Other sites include spectacular fossil localities, subduction zone metamorphic rocks (eclogites, blueschists, amphibolites), fold-thrust belts, giant sheath folds and Precambrian salt domes, as well as the huge sand dunes of the Rub al'Khali, the Empty Quarter, and the separate Wahiba (Sharkiyah) sandsea of Eastern Oman.

Written by Mike Searle, who has worked on geological research projects throughout Oman and UAE almost every year since 1978, this book describes the field geology of each site and includes a wealth of maps, field photos and diagrams illustrating key features. It also discusses the history of exploration of Arabia and the search for its hidden geological secrets. The book provides the geological basis for the establishment of a series of World Heritage Sites, National GeoParks and Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) throughout the region. As such, it is of interest to geologists, tourists, mountaineers, trekkers, rock climbers and naturalists.

Autorentext
Mike Searle is a Professor of Earth Sciences at the University of Oxford. His geological interests include the tectonic evolution of mountain belts, in particular processes associated with subduction, ophiolite formation and obduction, folding and thrusting, regional metamorphism and crustal melting. His work chiefly focuses on the Alpine-Himalayan belt, the Karakoram ranges and Tibetan Plateau region, as well as Southeast Asia (Burma, Thailand, Vietnam, Yunnan). One of his research projects is in the Oman Mountains, UAE, where he is engaged in detailed structural mapping and investigations on the P-T-t evolution of sub-ophiolite metamorphic rocks.

Inhalt
PART I: Geography, history and Exploration
Chapter 1: Arabia Geography and Exploration
Chapter 2: Exploration of the Oman UAE Mountains
PART II: Geology
Chapter 3: Geology of the Oman UAE Mountains
Chapter 4: Ophiolites and Structure of the Oman UAE Mountains
Chapter 5: Oil and Gas 
PART III: Regional GeoPark Sites 
Chapter 6: Musandam and Straits of Hormuz
Chapter 7: United Arab Emirates
Chapter 8: Northern Oman Mountains
Chapter 9: Ibri Wadi Hawasina - Rustaq
Chapter 10: Jebel al-Akhdar
Chapter 11: Muscat As Sifah
Chapter 12: Saih Hatat 
Chapter 13: Sharkiyah, Eastern Oman Mountains
Chapter 14: Central Oman, Wahiba Sands and Al Wusta
Chapter 15: Dhofar and the Frankincense coast
Chapter 16: Rub al'Khali - Empty Quarter
PART IV: GeoParks, Conservation and the Future
Chapter 17: Geo-heritage and Conservation