Analysis of human thermal comfort in Central European City during summer of 2015: A case of Novi Sad (Serbia)

Urban meteorological network (UMN) was established in the Central European City of Novi Sad (Serbia) based on "local climate zones" (LCZs) system. Physiologically Equivalent Temperature (PET) index was used for the assessment of outdoor thermal comfort in the "built" and "land cover" LCZ classes of Novi Sad. The index was calculated in the RayMan software based on the meteorological, physiological as well as building and vegetation data. Temporal analysis was performed for extreme heat stress days (PETmax ? 41 ?C), extreme heat stress hours (PETav ? 41 ?C) and days with occurrence of "tropical nights" (Tmin > 20 ?C) during exceptionally hot summer of 2015. Our results show that extreme heat stress hours are the least frequent in compact midrise LCZ 2, followed by dense trees LCZ A. On the contrary, countryside (low plants - LCZ D) showed to be the most uncomfortable area during daytime followed by compact low-rise areas (LCZ 3). Tropical nights are the most frequent in midrise LCZs 5 and 2 (40-46 nights) and decreasing towards open, sparsely built and natural LCZs (6-8 tropical nights in LCZs A and D). This is almost 800% decrease and it has implications for health and recreation of urban population and emphasizes the need for UMN development based on LCZ system.

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Sea Breeze Front and Outdoor Thermal Comfort during Summer in Northeastern Brazil

Atmosphere ◽

10.3390/atmos11091013 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (9) ◽

pp. 1013

Author(s):

Max Anjos ◽

António Lopes ◽

Andrews José de Lucena ◽

Francisco Mendonça

Keyword(s):

Heat Stress ◽

Thermal Comfort ◽

Meteorological Data ◽

Sea Breeze ◽

Weather Conditions ◽

Northeastern Brazil ◽

Outdoor Thermal Comfort ◽

Physiological Equivalent Temperature ◽

Local Climate ◽

Local Climate Zones

Characterizing the behaviour of the sea breeze phenomenon is the foremost factor in the reduction in the heat stress and the achievement of the pleasant environment in coastal cities globally. However, this seminal study shows that the Sea Breeze Front (SBF) development can be related to an increase in outdoor thermal discomfort in a northeastern Brazilian city during summer. We explored the relationship between SBF and thermal comfort conditions using in situ meteorological observations, the SBF identification method, local climate zones (LCZs) classification, and the Physiological Equivalent Temperature (PET) thermal comfort index. SBF days and Non-SBF days were characterized in terms of weather conditions, combining meteorological data and technical bulletins. SBF days included hot and sunny days associated with the centre of the Upper Tropospheric Cyclonic Vortices (UTCV). In contrast, Non-SBF days were observed in UTCV’s periphery because of cloudy sky and rainfall. The results showed that the mean temperature and PET in the SBF days were 2.0 °C and 3.8 °C higher, respectively, compared to Non-SBF days in all LCZ sites. The highest PET, of 40.0 °C, was found on SBF days. Our findings suggest that SBF development could be an aggravating factor for increasing heat stress of the people living in the northeastern coast of the Brazilian city, after SBF passage.

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What is the most threatening for citizens of a mid-latitude city: cold stress or heat stress?

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-6320 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Sara Top ◽

Dragan Milošević ◽

Steven Caluwaerts ◽

Stevan Savić

Keyword(s):

Heat Stress ◽

Cold Stress ◽

Thermal Comfort ◽

Heat Wave ◽

Outdoor Thermal Comfort ◽

Belgian Society ◽

Human Thermal Comfort ◽

Summer Heat ◽

Heat And Cold Stress ◽

The City

Both heat and cold waves cause extreme human thermal discomfort and a clear excess in mortality. This shows the importance of knowing the prevailing thermal comfort conditions and how thermal comfort conditions vary in various environments so measures can be taken. Microclimatic and outdoor human thermal comfort conditions are investigated in various built-up and green areas in the city of Ghent (Belgium) using meteorological measurements of six weather stations of the MOCCA (Monitoring the Cities Climate and Atmosphere) network in combination with calculations done by RayMan.Normal to extreme summer heat wave periods show that dangerous strong heat stress prevails during the daytime periods at all locations. Comparison of thermal comfort during normal and extreme summer heat wave periods showed that heat stress is more extreme when a heat wave is more intense. Overall the urban park in Ghent was the most comfortable location during heat waves since it effectively mitigates heat stress in the city. These results should be taken into account in urban planning and design to keep mid-latitude cities livable.Further, a one year data series revealed that outdoor cold stress was more apparent during 2017 in the mid-latitude city of Ghent that experiences a mild maritime climate. During spring and summer, both heat stress and cold stress occurred due to the larger diurnal temperature range compared to the other seasons. Even though high Physiological Equivalent Temperatures (PET) were obtained during a heat wave in summer, heat stress did not occur as intensely and as frequently compared to cold stress on annual level. It could thus be stated that outdoors, cold stress is a bigger threat than heat stress. However, one should keep in mind that the study was executed for outdoor thermal heat comfort and that people will take shelter or take measures when feeling uncomfortable. The question is thus rather, how are citizens protected against heat and cold stress? Currently, the Belgian society is better adapted to cold stress since most buildings contain central heating, while air conditioning is not standard. Future projections predict an increase in temperature, causing more occurrence of extreme heat stress, while extreme cold stress will be reduced. Additionally, the urban heat island effect currently has mainly a positive effect on the average annual outdoor thermal comfort conditions, while it will become a negative effect in the warmer future. Measures should thus be taken to reduce the threat of future heat stress.

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A New Method to Assess Fine-Scale Outdoor Thermal Comfort for Urban Agglomerations

Climate ◽

10.3390/cli8010006 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 6

Author(s):

Dirk Lauwaet ◽

Bino Maiheu ◽

Koen De Ridder ◽

Wesley Boënne ◽

Hans Hooyberghs ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Heat Stress ◽

Thermal Comfort ◽

Rural Areas ◽

Urban Areas ◽

Urban Heat Islands ◽

Outdoor Thermal Comfort ◽

Urban Agglomerations ◽

Human Thermal Comfort ◽

Air Temperatures ◽

Water Surfaces

In urban areas, high air temperatures and heat stress levels greatly affect human thermal comfort and public health, with climate change further increasing the mortality risks. This study presents a high resolution (100 m) modelling method, including detailed offline radiation calculations, that is able to efficiently calculate outdoor heat stress for entire urban agglomerations for a time period spanning several months. A dedicated measurement campaign was set up to evaluate model performance, yielding satisfactory results. As an example, the modelling tool was used to assess the effectiveness of green areas and water surfaces to cool air temperatures and wet bulb globe temperatures during a typical hot day in the city of Ghent (Belgium), since the use of vegetation and water bodies are shown to be promising in mitigating the adverse effects of urban heat islands and improving thermal comfort. The results show that air temperature reduction is most profound over water surfaces during the afternoon, while open rural areas are coolest during the night. Radiation shading from trees, and to a lesser extent, from buildings, is found to be most effective in reducing wet bulb globe temperatures and improving thermal comfort during the warmest moments of the day.

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Outdoor human thermal comfort in local climate zones of Novi Sad (Serbia) during heat wave period

Hungarian Geographical Bulletin ◽

10.15201/hungeobull.65.2.4 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 65 (2) ◽

pp. 129-137 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Dragan D. Milošević ◽

Stevan m. Savić ◽

Vladimir Marković ◽

Daniela Arsenović ◽

Ivan Šećerov

Keyword(s):

Thermal Comfort ◽

Heat Wave ◽

Wave Period ◽

Climate Zones ◽

Local Climate ◽

Human Thermal Comfort ◽

Local Climate Zones ◽

Novi Sad

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Measuring performance changes in highly transient extreme heat stress: Rationale, problem, and experimental procedures.

PsycEXTRA Dataset ◽

10.1037/e420282004-001 ◽

1963 ◽

Author(s):

Hilde Groth ◽

John Lyman

Keyword(s):

Heat Stress ◽

Extreme Heat ◽

Extreme Heat Stress

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Heat-related mortality as an indicator of population vulnerability in a mid-sized Central European city (Novi Sad, Serbia, summer 2015)

Geographica Pannonica ◽

10.5937/gp23-22680 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 23 (4) ◽

pp. 204-215 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Daniela Arsenović ◽

Stevan Savić ◽

Zorana Lužanin ◽

Ivana Radić ◽

Dragan Milošević ◽

...

Keyword(s):

European City ◽

Central European ◽

Population Vulnerability ◽

Novi Sad ◽

Related Mortality

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Projected Extreme Heat Stress in Northern Australia and the Implications for Development Policy

Planning Practice and Research ◽

10.1080/02697459.2021.2001733 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-23

Author(s):

Julian Bolleter ◽

Bill Grace ◽

Sarah Foster ◽

Anthony Duckworth ◽

Paula Hooper

Keyword(s):

Heat Stress ◽

Development Policy ◽

Extreme Heat ◽

Northern Australia ◽

Extreme Heat Stress

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Stage-dependent temperature sensitivity function predicts seed-setting rates under short-term extreme heat stress in rice

Agricultural and Forest Meteorology ◽

10.1016/j.agrformet.2018.03.006 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 256-257 ◽

pp. 196-206 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Ting Sun ◽

Toshihiro Hasegawa ◽

Liang Tang ◽

Wei Wang ◽

Junjie Zhou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Heat Stress ◽

Temperature Sensitivity ◽

Sensitivity Function ◽

Extreme Heat ◽

Seed Setting ◽

Short Term ◽

Extreme Heat Stress

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Future Changes in Human-Biometeorological Index Classes in Three Regions of Luxembourg, Western-Central Europe

Advances in Meteorology ◽

10.1155/2015/323856 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 2015 ◽

pp. 1-10 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Hanna Leona Lokys ◽

Jürgen Junk ◽

Andreas Krein

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Heat Stress ◽

Thermal Stress ◽

Thermal Comfort ◽

Central Europe ◽

Spatial Resolution ◽

Climate Index ◽

Human Thermal Comfort ◽

Air Temperatures ◽

The Impact

Projected climate change will cause increasing air temperatures affecting human thermal comfort. In the highly populated areas of Western-Central Europe a large population will be exposed to these changes. In particular Luxembourg—with its dense population and the large cross-border commuter flows—is vulnerable to changing thermal stress. Based on climate change projections we assessed the impact of climate change on human thermal comfort over the next century using two common human-biometeorological indices, the Physiological Equivalent Temperature and the Universal Thermal Climate Index. To account for uncertainties, we used a multimodel ensemble of 12 transient simulations (1971–2098) with a spatial resolution of 25 km. In addition, the regional differences were analysed by a single regional climate model run with a spatial resolution of 1.3 km. For the future, trends in air temperature, vapour pressure, and both human-biometeorological indices could be determined. Cold stress levels will decrease significantly in the near future up to 2050, while the increase in heat stress turns statistically significant in the far future up to 2100. This results in a temporarily reduced overall thermal stress level but further increasing air temperatures will shift the thermal comfort towards heat stress.

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