Geology and adventures in the Oman Mountains 1975- 2022 -by Prof. Dr. Mike Searle

About the speaker:

Mike Searle was bought up in Oman in the 1970s and started working on the geology of the Oman mountains for his PhD (1980). He continued working first with consulting groups in UAE, Musandam and across the Oman Mountains and since 1990 has had research projects throughout the Oman - UAE mountains with students and coleagues form Oxford University and elsewhere including teh Petroleum Instiute Abu Dhabi. He continues to travel to Oman every year and regards it as his second home.

About the talk:

The Oman – UAE Mountains contain many spectacular geological sites, many of which are of World Heritage status. A few of these sites include the World’s largest, best exposed ophiolite complex, a thrust slice of Tethyan oceanic crust and upper mantle emplaced onto the Arabian continental margin, the Musandam peninsula where the Arabian and Iranian plates first collided, the Jebel al-Akhdar massif where numerous deeply incised wadis cuts through the entire Permian – Cenomanian shelf carbonates are superbly exposed. Other notable sites include the Worlds’ largest sheath fold beautifully exposed in 3D along Wadi Mayh, the As Sifah eclogites where the leading edge of the Arabian crust has been subducted to ca 100 km and exhumed. Spectacular fold and thrust structures occur throughout the mountains and a unique thrust slice of high-temperature granulite facies rocks in exposed in Madhah and Fujairah. Many beautifully preserved fossil sites are present throughout the mountains. With the increasing development in Oman and especially in UAE now make it imperative to preserve these geological sites and preserve them for future generations. A major programme of setting up GeoPark sites throughout Oman is now in action. This talk will cover the geology of the Oman – UAE mountains with photographic coverage covering the last 45 years.