scholarly journals Surveying topographical changes and climate variations to detect the urban heat island in the city of Málaga (Spain)

2020 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 521-543
Author(s):  
J.M. Senciales-González ◽  
J. Rodrigo-Comino ◽  
P. Smith

The main aim of this research was to detect a possible urban heat island (UHI) in the tourist city of Málaga (Spain). To achieve this goal, different methods to validate annual and monthly temperature data have been used, and the internal variability of the UHI with respect to the topographical changes was also surveyed. Our results showed two types of atmospheric thermal gradients: one characterized by a positive gradient according to an elevation above sea level, and another with a negative gradient related to rural areas. The maximum impact of the UHI was found to be 9.1 ºC for an instantaneous event, 4.4 ºC for daily minimum temperatures in August, with a maximum weighted average difference of 2.3 ºC between data from urban and rural stations. We conclude that the detection of UHI is useful as a tool to help urban planners, in order to reduce the intensity of possible climate changes in cities. It is also concluded that UHI is not only a meteorological phenomenon in Málaga city but a climatic phenomenon, present during most days and across the transect of increasing intensity from the sea to the city.

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 25941-25981
Author(s):  
H. Wouters ◽  
K. De Ridder ◽  
N. P. M. van Lipzig ◽  
M. Demuzere ◽  
D. Lauwaet

Abstract. The urban heat island (UHI) over Paris during summer 2006 was simulated using the Advanced Regional Prediction System (ARPS) updated with a simple urban parametrization at a horizontal resolution of 1 km. Two integrations were performed, one with the urban land cover of Paris and another in which Paris was replaced by cropland. The focus is on a five-day clear-sky period, for which the UHI intensity reaches its maximum. The diurnal evolution of the UHI intensity was found to be adequately simulated for this five day period. The maximum difference at night in 2-m temperature between urban and rural areas stemming from the urban heating is reproduced with a relative error of less than 10%. The UHI has an ellipsoidal shape and stretches along the prevailing wind direction. The maximum UHI intensity of 6.1 K occurs at 23:00 UTC located 6 km downstream of the city centre and this largely remains during the whole night. An idealized one-column model study demonstrates that the nocturnal differential sensible heat flux, even though much smaller than its daytime value, is mainly responsible for the maximum UHI intensity. The reason for this nighttime maximum is that additional heat is only affecting a shallow layer of 150 m. At the same time, an idealized study shows that the orography around the city of Paris induces an uplift. This leads to a considerable nocturnal adiabatic cooling over cropland. In contrast, this uplift has little effect on the mixed-layer temperature over the city. About twenty percent of the total maximum UHI intensity is estimated to be caused by this uplift.


Author(s):  
A. Vyas ◽  
B. Shastri ◽  
Y. Joshi

As per the current estimates, nearly half of the world’s population lives in the cities, by 2030 it is calculated to increase to 70%. This calls for a need of more sustainable structure in the urban areas as to support increase in the urban population. Urban Heat Island is one such conspicuous phenomenon which has its significance at local regional and also at the global levels. It is a microscale temperature variation between urban and rural areas, in which urban area are warmer compare to surrounding rural area. The temperature difference between the urban and the rural areas are usually modest, averaging less than 1°C, but occasionally rising to several degrees when urban, topographical and meteorological conditions are favorable for the UHI to develop. It is defined as the phenomena where in the occurrence of surface and atmospheric modifications due to the urbanization causes modification in the thermal climatic conditions which results into warmer areas as compared to the surrounding non urbanized areas, particularly in night. In that case urban built forms such as buildings, roofs, pavements etc. absorb more solar heat/radiation and remain warmer throughout the day time and slowly release energy during night time. The two major causes are rapid urbanization and anthropogenic heat generated due to transport and industrial activities. Urban Heat Island is a crucial subject for global environment. Urbanization has significant effects on local weather and climate. Among these effects one of the most popular is the urban heat island, for which the temperatures of the central urban locations are several degrees higher than those of nearby rural areas of similar elevation. Satellite data provides important inputs for estimating regional surface albedo and evapo-transpiration required in the studies related to surface energy balance. <br><br> The phenomenon of UHI affects environment and population in so many ways it can also be considered as an active element that cause vulnerabilities to human health, the marginal population affected largely as the natural environment is their only home or their main shelter. Furthermore elderly people also affected in greater amount as their weakening immunes system. Major effects of UHI on environment include: a) Air Quality, b) Energy consumption and c) Human health. <br><br> To study the causes and effect of UHI of any urban area, the first step is to demarcate the spatial distribution of UHI and its intensity over different time period of the day as well as difference in the temperature of urban area with the surrounding rural areas. Secondly, study of land use land cover change in the area also helps in identifying causes of heat accumulation for particular region. After marking up of intensity, analysis of different zones for understanding the relationship between UHI and urban morphological features can be done which further became suggestive towards planning of urban center that mitigates the effect of UHI. Mainly two approaches are there to demarcate UHI study as: <br><br> &ndash; Field data collection and observations <br> &ndash; Remote sensing data analysis <br><br> For a long period of time observations from interior of the city and outwards of it can analyze by a climatic methods, by observing many days as well as many times of a day continuously to analyze the daily variation law of the heat island effects. As the city is for its developmental approaches may cover an area of hundreds of square kilometers, the ground observation data is not able to provide enough detail about the urban heat island distribution characteristics. The most precise method is the Satellite Remote Sensing method. The UHI phenomenon can be analyzed by using the thermal infrared data obtained meteorological satellite sensing. The atmospheric attenuation can be corrected for the remote sensing data by use of meteorological soundings and ground observation data. Ideally the heat island effect over a city is not same for any other city. <br><br> Satellite images from AVHRR Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer) or ENVISAT AATSR provides thermal infrared data and comparatively easy to acquire, process and analyze. In the case of Ahmedabad city, land cover changes over the time is to be studied by classifying the image and then temperature can be derived by using a quadratic regression model from Malaret at al. (1985). Band 6 produces the images that show the relative difference emitted thermal energy that correlate in part with the effects of solar heating on surface of varying composition and orientation. The surface temperatures are suitable to detect UHI at Urban canopy level. Nichol (1996) found that surface temperatures extracted are moreover similar to the actual ambient air temperatures recorded. <br><br> The paper has narrated analylitical framework on which the research has been carried out. The result derived on Land Surface Temperature variation causing Urban Heat Island, its relationship with the land use land cover. A time series data has been used. Authors are thankful to Ms. Darshana Rawal, Ms. Pallavi Knahdewal and Mr. Hardik Panchal.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (7) ◽  
pp. e0254371
Author(s):  
Xueqin Li ◽  
Lindsay C. Stringer ◽  
Sarah Chapman ◽  
Martin Dallimer

Due to the combined effects of urban growth and climate change, rapid urbanisation is particularly challenging in African cities. Areas that will house a large proportion of the urban population in the future coincide with where natural hazards are expected to occur, and where hazard risk management institutions, knowledge, and capacity are often lacking. One of the challenges posed by rapid urbanisation is the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect, whereby urban areas are warmer than the surrounding rural areas. This study investigates urbanisation patterns and alterations in surface UHI (SUHI) intensity for the Kampala urban cluster, Uganda. Analyses show that between 1995 and 2017, Kampala underwent extensive changes to its urban built-up area. From the centre of the city to adjoining non-built up areas in all directions, the urban land cover increased from 12,133 ha in 1995 to 25,389 ha in 2016. The area of SUHI intensity in Kampala expanded significantly over the 15-year period of study, expanding from 22,910 ha in 2003 to 27,900 ha in 2016, while the annual daytime SUHI of 2.2°C in 2003 had decreased to 1.9°C by 2017. Although SUHI intensity decreased in some parts of the city, elsewhere it increased, suggesting that urbanisation does not always lead to a deterioration of environmental conditions. We postulate that urban development may therefore not necessarily create an undesirable impact on local climate if it is properly managed. Rapidly growing cities in Africa and elsewhere should ensure that the dynamics of their development are directed towards mitigating potentially harmful environmental impacts, such as UHI effect through careful planning that considers both bluespaces and greenspaces.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (22) ◽  
pp. 9652
Author(s):  
Pavel Ichim ◽  
Lucian Sfîcă

This study was carried out in order to outline the human bioclimatic stress/comfort conditions within the area of Iași city, Romania. The meteorological data were obtained over a 7-year period (December 2012–November 2019) from an observation network relying on 8 fixed observation points located in selected spots, relevant for the urban climate conditions in the region. The results demonstrate firstly that throughout the entire analyzed period, using the thermo-hygrometric index (THI), “very cold” conditions characterize 4% of the entire year in the inner parts of the city and 6% in the rural area, while the “hot” THI conditions vary from 18% in the middle of the urban heat island to 15% in the rural area. Overall, the rural areas are generally more comfortable than the inner city, especially during summer, when the urban heat island (UHI) core is starting to develop from the evening and persists during the night. On the contrary, the UHI renders the inner city more comfortable than the rural surroundings from October to April. Similar bioclimatic conditions are also presented in detail for the summer by the relative strain index (RSI), which exceeds the stress threshold value mostly during heat waves, when a significant contrast between urban and rural areas is felt. In brief, it has been determined that the most suitable area for human comfort in Iași city is inside the urban area during the winter and in the rural areas during the summer.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Monika Kopecká ◽  
Daniel Szatmári ◽  
Juraj Holec ◽  
Ján Feranec

Abstract. Cities are generally expected to experience higher temperatures than surrounding rural areas due to the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect. The aim of this paper is to document identification and delimitation of land cover/land use (LC/LU) classes based on Urban Atlas data in three cities in Slovakia: the capital Bratislava and two regional centres, Trnava and Žilina, in the years 1998–2016 and their effect on the temperature change. The concept of Local Climate Zones (replaced by LC/LU classes in this study) was used as an input for the UHI modelling by application of the Mikroskaliges Urbanes KLIma MOdell (MUKLIMO). The model MUKLIMO was validated by data taken in five stations in Bratislava, two in Trnava, and one in Žilina, while a good rate of agreement between the modelled and measured data was statistically proved. A single representative day (August 22, 2018) was chosen for which UHI was modelled with three inputs of LC/LU classes: situation in 1998, 2007, and 2016 to assess the effect of change of LC/LU classes on the distribution of temperatures. The spatial manifestation of UHI was assessed in the frame of LC/LU classes for 2016 at 21:00 of Central European Summer Time (CEST). The results indicate that UHI intensity trends are spatially correlated with LC/LU classes and their change pattern. Results of Bratislava show, regarding the size of the city and relief dissection, greater variability than smaller Trnava situated in flat terrain and Žilina situated in the river valley surrounded by the mountain ranges.


2010 ◽  
Vol 2010 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey B. Basara ◽  
Heather G. Basara ◽  
Bradley G. Illston ◽  
Kenneth C. Crawford

During late July and early August 2008, an intense heat wave occurred in Oklahoma City. To quantify the impact of the urban heat island (UHI) in Oklahoma City on observed and apparent temperature conditions during the heat wave event, this study used observations from 46 locations in and around Oklahoma City. The methodology utilized composite values of atmospheric conditions for three primary categories defined by population and general land use: rural, suburban, and urban. The results of the analyses demonstrated that a consistent UHI existed during the study period whereby the composite temperature values within the urban core were approximately C warmer during the day than the rural areas and over C warmer at night. Further, when the warmer temperatures were combined with ambient humidity conditions, the composite values consistently revealed even warmer heat-related variables within the urban environment as compared with the rural zone.


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (3.2) ◽  
pp. 597
Author(s):  
Yuri Golik ◽  
Oksana Illiash ◽  
Nataliia Maksiuta

The concept of "heat-island effect", its structure and features of formation over the city are given. The climatic and other features of the city that influence the formation of this phenomenon are mentioned.  The data on functioning in the city of the municipal production enterprise of the heat economy is indicated. The traditional method for determining the formation of the urban "heat-island effect" is described. The data and comparative graphs on the temperature regimes of the city and region are presented. The possibility of influencing architectural features of the city on the formation of the "heat-island-effect" is determined. According to the obtained results, further integrated researches are proposed for obtaining reliable results of the given question. 


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shihan Chen ◽  
Yuanjian Yang ◽  
Fei Deng ◽  
Yanhao Zhang ◽  
Duanyang Liu ◽  
...  

Abstract. Due to rapid urbanization and intense human activities, the urban heat island (UHI) effect has become a more concerning climatic and environmental issue. A high spatial resolution canopy UHI monitoring method would help better understand the urban thermal environment. Taking the city of Nanjing in China as an example, we propose a method for evaluating canopy UHI intensity (CUHII) at high resolution by using remote sensing data and machine learning with a Random Forest (RF) model. Firstly, the observed environmental parameters [e.g., surface albedo, land use/land cover, impervious surface, and anthropogenic heat flux (AHF)] around densely distributed meteorological stations were extracted from satellite images. These parameters were used as independent variables to construct an RF model for predicting air temperature. The correlation coefficient between the predicted and observed air temperature in the test set was 0.73, and the average root-mean-square error was 0.72 °C. Then, the spatial distribution of CUHII was evaluated at 30-m resolution based on the output of the RF model. We found that wind speed was negatively correlated with CUHII, and wind direction was strongly correlated with the CUHII offset direction. The CUHII reduced with the distance to the city center, due to the de-creasing proportion of built-up areas and reduced AHF in the same direction. The RF model framework developed for real-time monitoring and assessment of high-resolution CUHII provides scientific support for studying the changes and causes of CUHII, as well as the spatial pattern of urban thermal environments.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (17) ◽  
pp. 9617 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wesam M. Elbardisy ◽  
Mohamed A. Salheen ◽  
Mohammed Fahmy

In the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, studies focused on the relationship between urban planning practice and climatology are still lacking, despite the fact that the latter has nearly three decades of literature in the region and the former has much more. However, such an unfounded relationship that would consider urban sustainability measures is a serious challenge, especially considering the effects of climate change. The Greater Cairo Region (GCR) has recently witnessed numerous serious urban vehicular network re-development, leaving the city less green and in need of strategically re-thinking the plan regarding, and the role of, green infrastructure. Therefore, this study focuses on approaches to the optimization of the urban green infrastructure, in order to reduce solar irradiance in the city and, thus, its effects on the urban climatology. This is carried out by studying one of the East Cairo neighborhoods, named El-Nozha district, as a representative case of the most impacted neighborhoods. In an attempt to quantify these effects, using parametric simulation, the Air Temperature (Ta), Mean Radiant Temperature (Tmrt), Relative Humidity (RH), and Physiological Equivalent Temperature (PET) parameters were calculated before and after introducing urban trees, acting as green infrastructure types that mitigate climate change and the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect. Our results indicate that an optimized percentage, spacing, location, and arrangement of urban tree canopies can reduce the irradiance flux at the ground surface, having positive implications in terms of mitigating the urban heat island effect.


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