AL QUAA DESERT, UAE: The gleaming skyscrapers and bright lights of the UAE draw the eyes of all who travel there, a sign of the nation’s rapid, oil-fueled development over the last few decades, turning it into a major hub for commerce and tourism.
But something has been lost over that period: a clear vision across nearly all of the country’s inhabited lands of the stars in the night sky that once guided Bedouin across the shifting desert dunes of its vast interior, known as the Empty Quarter. A group of volunteers from the Dubai Astronomy Group has recently been helping people reconnect with the sight of stars and the Milky Way by taking them on nighttime excursions to Al-Quaa Desert, one of the darkest spots remaining in the Emirates.
BACKGROUND
The desert is easily reachable by vehicle, about 100km southeast of Abu Dhabi along a major highway to the oasis city of Al-Ain, then another road south, far out into the desert.
“It causes us to appreciate our existence in this galaxy,” Sheeraz Awan, the general manager of the astronomy group, said as he guided participants through a weekend view of the stars in late May.
The UAE ranks among the world’s most light-polluted countries, along with several other Gulf states whose populations largely live in major cities. A 2016 scientific study concluded that “humanity has enveloped our planet in a luminous fog” and suggested that 99 percent of the Emirates’ population could not see the Milky Way from their homes because of artificial light.
That illumination ranges from streetlights on roadways to the LED light show that thrills tourists at Dubai’s Burj Khalifa. Abu Dhabi plans to build a $1.7 billion version of the Sphere, the Las Vegas attraction, on its Yas Island.
The desert is easily reachable by vehicle, about 100km southeast of Abu Dhabi along a major highway to the oasis city of Al-Ain, then another road south, far out into the desert.
Despite overhead road lights along the stretch known as Razeen Road and a heavily lit prison along the way, the desert lies just beyond in total darkness, unburdened by the city’s bright illumination. Razeen Road finally jogs east, but an automatic gate opens to allow drivers onto an unpaved road leading deeper into the desert.
Kilometers further along, past those camping in the dunes and enjoying some of the last good overnight weather before the UAE summertime high temperatures of around 45°C, the astronomers gathered dozens of people to see the stars.
They weren’t alone. Several laborers beneath heavy blankets slept nearby in the back of a pickup truck under the stars. Under one small LED lamp signaling where to park, a Solifugae — better known as a camel spider — ate another camel spider after a long struggle. The creature ran briefly toward a journalist and a volunteer before the vibrations of an approaching car sent it scurrying back into the darkness. Everyone around them watched their steps carefully.
On carpets laid out for the weekend excursion in May, families speaking Arabic, English, and Russian looked up at the sky.
The half-moon slowly set over the horizon. Soon, the outline of the Milky Way could be seen with the naked eye.
“When you look toward the east, can you see that faint cloud?” Awan asked. “That, ladies and gentlemen, is the Milky Way.”
He used a laser pointer to highlight the array of stars, drawing one woman to exclaim: “Ay ye ye!”
The Dubai Astronomy Group volunteers described this as one of the best times of the year to see the galaxy.
Several gasped as they spotted meteors streaking across the sky, easily visible in the darkness, free of interference from urban lights.
Some gathered around telescopes to look at individual stars. Others lie flat on the cold desert sand, getting tips on how to take long-exposure photos with their mobile phones to see the galaxy gleaming overhead.
Over time, people drifted to their cars and set out on the drive back to the UAE’s lit highways and cities.
For a moment, they had engaged with the night in the same way as Bedouins before them.
“When we look at this Milky Way, we’re kind of involved in an activity, which is not new,” Awan told the stargazers.
“It’s something that people throughout time have been engaged in.”
