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All United Arab Emirates Mezairaa Singing Sand Dunes of Liwa
AO Edited

Singing Sand Dunes of Liwa

Over the dunes of the Empty Quarter, the mysterious music of the desert.

Mezairaa, United Arab Emirates

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bradleyhope
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Dunes of Liwa. Courtesy of Sammy Dallal  
Dunes of Liwa. Courtesy of Sammy Dallal  
Dunes in the Liwa Desert   AhmedAlAwadhi7/CC BY-SA 4.0
  Peter Dowley/CC BY 2.0
  Peter Dowley/CC BY 2.0
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About

According to local legend, evil spirits whisper names to disorient travelers and drag them into danger, singing through the moaning tons of the sand dunes. From beneath footsteps and car wheels, a deep roaring tone comes from the sand. The sound has been compared to the low note of the didgeridoo or a low-flying plane. In the 1200s, Marco Polo, in his journeys through the dunes of China, said he was struck by "the sounds of all kinds of musical instruments," and also "of drums and the clash of arms."

The phenomenon is caused by the vibrations of the grains of sand as they fall on top of each other. The study of it is new, however, and physicists debate the model that most accurately describes the mechanism. Thirty locations worldwide, including ones in China and the US, have singing sand, but none, experts say, has as pronounced and mellifluous a sound as the giant dunes in the south of the United Arab Emirates. This area is known as the Empty Quarter and stretches into Saudi Arabia.

Local guides—who you will need if want to avoid getting lost in the tessellating sands, which can bewilder and quickly kill visitors—can take you to see and hear these mysterious dunes.

Related Tags

Music Singing Sands Geological Oddities Natural Wonders Sounds Geology Nature

Know Before You Go

Drive from Abu Dhabi or Dubai south toward Liwa. The dunes surround the city, which is made up of small buildings along the edges of the desert. You'll likely go with a guide from another city or meet him at one of the hotels in Liwa.

Community Contributors

Added By

bradleyhope

Edited By

Leslie McIntyre, Michelle Cassidy

  • Leslie McIntyre
  • Michelle Cassidy

Published

July 30, 2009

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Sources
  • Hear recordings here: http://www.nymoon.com/pubs/desert/singingsand/
  • Read about the science here: http://www.thenational.ae/article/20080804/FRONTIERS/746076430/1036/NEWS
  • Watch it in action here: http://www.thenational.ae/article/20080804/ONLINESPECIAL/958187693/1036/NEWS
Singing Sand Dunes of Liwa
Mezairaa
United Arab Emirates
23.144432, 53.791168
Visit Website

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