Peter Aleshire spent a decade as a science writer; previously, he authored four history books and a guide detailing the training of F-16 pilots. Aleshire spent 18 years as a newspaper reporter and editor, 13 years as a senior lecturer at Arizona State University, and now serves as editor of Arizona Highways magazine. He has written two other volumes for The Extreme Earth set, Deserts and Ocean Ridges and Trenches. The foreword was written by Geoffrey H. Nash, a geologist with wide experience in surface mapping of rock formations, oil and gas exploration, environmental engineering, and surface water quality. Nash also has interests in paleontology, fossils, and natural selection. He received a B.A. from Knox College in Illinois and an M.B.A. from Boston University.