Trends of urban surface temperature and heat island characteristics in the Mediterranean

Urban air temperature studies usually focus on the urban canopy heat island phenomenon, whereby the city center experiences higher near surface air temperatures compared to its surrounding non-urban areas. The Land Surface Temperature (LST) is used instead of urban air temperature to identify the Surface Urban Heat Island (SUHI). In this study, the nighttime LST and SUHI characteristics and trends in the seventeen largest Mediterranean cities were investigated, by analyzing satellite observations for the period 2001–2012. SUHI averages and trends were based on an innovative approach of comparing urban pixels to randomly selected non-urban pixels, which carries the potential to better standardize satellite-derived SUHI estimations. A positive trend for both LST and SUHI for the majority of the examined cities was documented. Furthermore, a 0.1 °C decade^?1 increase in urban LST corresponded to an increase in SUHI by about 0.04 °C decade^?1. A longitudinal differentiation was found in the urban LST trends, with higher positive values appearing in the eastern Mediterranean. Examination of urban infrastructure and development factors during the same period revealed correlations with SUHI trends, which can be used to explain differences among cities. However, the majority of the cities examined show considerably increased trends in terms of the enhancement of SUHI. These findings are considered important so as to promote sustainable urbanization, as well as to support the development of heat island adaptation and mitigation plans in the Mediterranean.     

Global long-term mapping of surface temperature shows intensified intra-city urban heat island extremes

Surface temperatures are generally higher in cities than in rural surroundings. This phenomenon, known as Surface Urban Heat Island (SUHI), increases the risk of heat-related human illnesses and mortality. Past global studies analysed this phenomenon aggregated at city scale or over seasonal and annual time periods, while human impacts strongly depend on shorter term heat stress experienced locally. Here we develop a global long-term high-resolution dataset of daytime SUHI, offering an insight into the space–time variability of the urban–rural temperature differences which is unprecedented at global scale. Our results show that across urban areas worldwide over the period 2003–2020, 3-day SUHI extremes are on average more than twice as high as the warm-season median SUHI, with local exceedances up to 10 K. Over this period, SUHI extremes have increased more rapidly than warm-season medians, and averaged worldwide are now 1.04 K or 31% higher compared to 2003. This can be linked with increasing urbanisation, more frequent heatwaves, and greening of the earth, processes that are all expected to continue in the coming decades. Within many cities there are hotspots where extreme SUHI intensity is 10–15 K higher compared to relatively cooler city parts. Given the limited human adaptability to heat stress, our results advocate for mitigation strategies targeted at reducing SUHI extremes in the most vulnerable and exposed city neighbourhoods.     

利用ASTER数据分析南京城市地表温度分布

城市环境日益受到人们重视, 南京是长江下游人口密集的城市, 研究南京市地表温度分布对了解南京城市气候, 改善生活环境, 为城市发展规划提供有效的气象服务具有一定科学意义。该文利用2002年8月21日10:30 (北京时) ASTER热红外数据, 在ENVI软件的支持下, 通过劈窗算法反演南京城市地表温度, 进一步生成城市地表温度分布等温线图。用同时相ETM+数据进行验证, 二者十分吻合, 说明ASTER反演结果可靠。结果表明:南京市存在明显的热岛效应, 城市地表温度分布差异大; 不同下垫面的地表温度差异明显, 城区地表温度总体高于郊区, 植被覆盖密集区地表温度低于植被稀疏地, 具有较大水域面积和较密植被的城中各大公园形成多个冷岛, 长江水体温度最低; 随着城市的扩大, 新城区热岛效应更加明显。水体和密集植被能显著改善城市环境。     

The surface urban heat island in the city of Brno (Czech Republic) derived from land surface temperatures and selected reasons for its spatial variability

Thermal infrared images from Landsat satellites are used to derive land surface temperatures (LST) and to calculate the intensity of the surface urban heat island (UHI) during the summer season in and around the city of Brno (Czech Republic). Overall relief, land use structure, and the distribution of built-up areas determine LST and UHI spatial variability in the study area. Land-cover classes, amount and vigor of vegetation, and density of built-up areas are used as explanatory variables. The highest LST values typically occur in industrial and commercial areas, which contribute significantly to surface UHI intensity. The intensity of surface UHI, defined as the difference between mean LST for urban and rural areas, reached 4.2 and 6.7 °C in the two images analyzed. Analysis of two surface characteristics in terms of the amount of vegetation cover, represented by normalized difference vegetation index, demonstrates the predominance of LST variability (56–67 % of explained variance) over the degree of urbanization as represented by density of buildings (37–40 % of LST variance).     

Effects of an Urban Park and Residential Area on the Atmospheric CO2 Concentration and Flux in Seoul, Korea

The CO₂ concentrations and fluxes over an urban forest site (Namsan) and an urban residential region (Boramae) in Seoul, Korea, during the non-growing season (2–4 March 2011), the growing season (10–12 June 2011), and the late-growing season (22–24 September 2011) were analyzed. The CO₂ concentrations of two sites showed nearly the same diurnal variation, with a maximum value occurring during the night and a minimum value occurring during daytime, as well as the same seasonal variation, with a maximum value during the non-growing season (early spring) and a minimum value during the growing season (summer). The CO₂ flux over the urban forest did not show any typical diurnal variation during the non-growing season, but did show diurnal variation with a small positive value during the night and a large negative value during daytime in the growing and late-growing seasons due to photosynthesis in the urban forest. The CO₂ flux over the urban residential region showed a positive daily mean value for all periods, with large values during the non-growing season and small values during the growing season, and it also showed diurnal variation with two maxima at 0600–1000 LST and 1800–2400 LST, and two minima at 0300-0600 LST and 1100-1500 LST, and was strongly correlated with the use of liquefied natural gas for cooking and heating by surrounding houses.     

广州地区人为热释放的日变化和年际变化估算

基于《广州市统计年鉴》2001~2012年数据估算了广州2000~2011年人为热释放的日变化以及年际变化,计算中考虑了人类新陈代谢、工业、交通以及生活排放人为热。计算结果显示:4种排放源中工业12年平均达到了55%,交通达到36%,其次依次为生活排放和新陈代谢排放。总的人为热在这12年时间里大致呈现上升的趋势,从2000年的2.7×1017 J增加到2011年的4.4×1017 J,但在2006年后有小幅的下降,这主要是由于工业释放是人为热释放的主要部分,在2006年后工业能源效率有所提高以致能源消耗排放率下降造成的。日变化在10:00(北京时间,下同)和14:00达到最大,并且12年间随时间的推移日变化呈现出下降的趋势,主要是由于城市化进程的速度远远快于能源消耗、人口和车辆保有量增加的速度。对比WRF模式中城市模块中的人为热释放的日变化系数,这些原始系数在广州使用的误差主要与广州地区和西方国家的生产生活作息时间有关。     

城市化对北京一次极端降水过程影响的数值分析

通过敏感性试验探讨了城市化对北京2011年6月23日局地极端降水事件的影响.结果表明耦合了城市冠层模式的WRF系统能较好地模拟出强降水的局地性和突发性特征,考虑了精细下垫面分类的敏感性试验模拟降水更接近实况;下垫面城市化对地表能量平衡影响明显,对大气的热量影响除加强地表对边界层大气向上感热输送外,还会减少局地地表蒸发及大气水分供应,增加边界层高度,并对移经本地的天气系统强度及水汽输送产生较明显的影响.     

减化比值植被指数在城市热环境研究中的应用

以南京市ETM＋影像为数据源,经嵌套于ERDAS IMAGINE9.1中的ATCOR2大气校正后,提取了南京城区地表温度（land surface temperature,LST）、归一化植被指数（normalized difference vegetation index,NDVI）和减化比值植被指数（reduced simple ratio,RSR）,基于实测值和同时相AS-TER数据反演结果的双重验证,拟合了两种植被指数与地表温度的定量关系,并进行对比分析。结果表明,除水体外,植被覆盖度高的区域地表温度明显低于植被稀少或无植被区;地表温度与NDVI呈显著线性负相关,与RSR呈显著幂函数负相关,后者的相关性高于前者;当RSR小于3.2时,地表温度随植被覆盖增加而锐减,当RSR大于3.2时,植被覆盖继续增加,地表温度却趋于恒定,呈现植被降温效应＂饱和＂现象;对比比值植被指数（ratio vegetation index,RVI）应用结果发现,近红外和红光比值的线性拉伸是导致NDVI和RSR表征城市热环境效应存在差异的主因,还与短波红外对水分敏感和能真实反映植被冠层结构有关。中国6大城市热环境案例研究均表明,RSR能直接解释对于不同下垫面,增加相同的植被覆盖度其降温效果存在差异的现象,而不进行土地利用分类,NDVI则无法揭示此现象。     

基于MODIS白天地温产品的青藏高原海拔依赖型变暖特征分析

基于2001～2018年中分辨率成像光谱仪（MODIS）探测的白天地面温度（简称MODIS 白天地温）资料,与青藏高原（简称高原）122个气象站点观测的最高气温资料,在年尺度上评估了MODIS 白天地温在高原的适用性,研究了高原五个干湿分区下MODIS 白天地温的海拔依赖型变暖特征,得到以下主要结论:（1）MODIS白天地温能够基本再现观测的最高气温的时空以及海拔依赖型变暖特征;（2）高原整体上,MODIS白天地温存在显著的海拔依赖型变暖特征,平均海拔每增加100 m,其趋势增加0.02°C (10a)?1,且受积雪—反照率反馈主导;（3）干湿分区下,海拔依赖型变暖特征在高原表现为偏湿润地区强于偏干旱地区;季风区强于西风区。海拔依赖型特征强弱:半湿润地区＞湿润半湿润地区＞半干旱地区＞湿润地区＞干旱地区。平均海拔每增加100 m,以上区域的地温趋势分别增加0.06,0.03,0.03,0.01,0.01°C (10a)?1。半湿润和湿润半湿润地区年均温在0°C左右,在气候变暖背景下积雪—反照率反馈作用最为强烈,是其海拔依赖型变暖的主导因素;干旱与半干旱地区年均温相对更低,气候变暖程度对积雪影响相对较小,积雪—反照率反馈作用被限制,但仍对上述地区的海拔依赖型变暖起主导作用;而湿润地区的积雪覆盖率的上升可能是由于降雪（固态降水）增加抵消了积雪融化损耗,云辐射、水汽等其他因素主导了其海拔依赖型变暖。     

Further Development of the Vegetated Urban Canopy Model Including a Grass-Covered Surface Parametrization and Photosynthesis Effects

The vegetated urban canopy model (VUCM), which includes parametrizations of urban physical processes for artificial surfaces and vegetated areas in an integrated system, has been further developed by including physical processes associated with grass-covered surfaces in urban pervious surfaces and the photosynthesis effects of urban vegetation. Using measurements made from three urban/suburban sites during the BUBBLE field campaign in 2002, the model’s performance in modelling surface fluxes (momentum flux, net radiation, sensible and latent heat fluxes and storage heat flux) and canopy air conditions (canopy air temperature and specific humidity) was critically evaluated for the non-precipitation and the precipitation days. The observed surface fluxes at the urban/suburban sites were significantly altered by precipitation as well as urban vegetation. Especially, the storage heat at urban surfaces and underlying substrates varied drastically depending on weather conditions while having an important role in the formation of a nocturnal urban surface layer. Unlike the nighttime canopy air temperature that was largely affected by the storage-heat release, the daytime canopy air conditions were highly influenced by the vertical turbulent exchange with the overlying atmosphere. The VUCM well reproduced these observed features in surface fluxes and canopy air conditions at all sites while performing well for both the non-precipitation and the precipitation days. The newly implemented parametrizations clearly improved the model’s performance in the simulation of sensible and latent heat fluxes at the sites, more noticeably at the suburban site where the vegetated area fraction is the largest among the sites. Sensitivity analyses for model input parameters in VUCM elucidated the relative importance of the morphological, aerodynamic, hydrological and radiative/thermal properties in modelling urban surface fluxes and canopy air conditions for daytime and nighttime periods. These results suggest that the VUCM has great potential for urban atmospheric numerical modelling for a range of cities and weather conditions in addition to having a better physical basis in the representation of urban vegetated areas and associated physical processes.     

基于MODIS的安徽省代表城市热岛效应时空特征

利用2001—2010年覆盖安徽省的MODIS数据,选取在气候、地理、城市化等方面具有代表性的合肥、芜湖、阜阳作为研究对象,并结合GIS技术,分析地表温度的日变化及季节变化特征,得到安徽省代表城市热岛效应的时空分布。结果表明:安徽省省会合肥的热岛效应最为显著,安徽省南部代表城市芜湖的热岛效应强于北部代表城市阜阳, 同时具有显著的日变化和季节变化特征。近10年来,安徽代表城市热岛面积和热岛强度均呈增加趋势,但合肥热岛强度大于3 ℃的极端热岛效应有一定缓解。白天大片水体对缓解城市的热岛效应作用明显,而夜晚则不明显,甚至成为地表温度的高值中心。夏季地表温度与归一化植被指数的负相关最显著,即提高城市植被覆盖度对降低地表温度和缓解城市热岛效应有重要影响。     

Diurnal Variation in the Vertical Profile of the Raindrop Size Distribution for Stratiform Rain as Inferred from Micro Rain Radar Observations in Sumatra

The diurnal variation in the vertical structure of the raindrop size distribution(RSD) associated with stratiform rain at Kototabang, West Sumatra(0.20°S, 100.32°E), was investigated using micro rain radar(MRR) observations from January 2012 to August 2016. Along with the MRR data, the RSD from an optical disdrometer and vertical profile of precipitation from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission were used to establish the microphysical characteristics of diurnal rainfall.Rainfall during 0000–0600 LST and 1800–2400 LST had a lower concentration of small drops and a higher concentration of large drops when compared to rainfall during the daytime(0600–1800 LST). The RSD stratified on the basis of rain rate(R) showed a lower total concentration of drops and higher mass-weighted mean diameter in 0000–0600 LST and1800–2400 LST than in the daytime. During the daytime, the RSD is likely governed by a riming process that can be seen from a weak bright band(BB). On the other hand, during 0000–0600 LST and 1800–2400 LST, the BB was stronger and the rainfall was associated with a higher concentration of midsize and large drops, which could be attributed to more active aggregation right above the melting layer with minimal breakup. Diurnal variation in the vertical profile of RSD led to a different radar reflectivity(Z)–R relationship in the rain column, in which Z during the periods 0000–0600 LST and1800–2400 LST was larger than at the other times, for the same R.     

Statistical estimation of high-resolution surface air temperature from MODIS over the Yangtze River Delta,China

High-resolution surface air temperature data are critical to regional climate modeling in terms of energy balance, urban climate change, and so on. This study demonstrates the feasibility of using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) land surface temperature (LST) to estimate air temperature at a high resolution over the Yangtze River Delta region, China. It is found that daytime LST is highly correlated with maximum air temperature, and the linear regression coefficients vary with the type of land surface. The air temperature at a resolution of 1 km is estimated from the MODIS LST with linear regression models. The estimated air temperature shows a clear spatial structure of urban heat islands. Spatial patterns of LST and air temperature differences are detected, indicating maximum differences over urban and forest regions during summer. Validations are performed with independent data samples, demonstrating that the mean absolute error of the estimated air temperature is approximately 2.5°C, and the uncertainty is about 3.1°C, if using all valid LST data. The error is reduced by 0.4°C (15%) if using best-quality LST with errors of less than 1 K. The estimated high-resolution air temperature data have great potential to be used in validating high-resolution climate models and other regional applications.     

重庆市主城都市区热岛效应定量评估北大核心CSCD

结合夜间灯光数据、高程数据及地表分类数据,提出一种针对山地城市郊区背景划分的方法,并采用城乡二分法定量评估2001—2020年重庆市主城都市区热岛效应时空变化特征。结果显示传统缓冲区法和综合缓冲区法提取的郊区背景存在明显差异。利用传统缓冲区法提取郊区背景估算的热岛存在大量假热岛像元,导致传统缓冲区法估算的热岛面积明显大于综合缓冲区法。综合缓冲区法估算结果表明:主城都市区热岛主要分布在中心城区、长寿区、涪陵区以及各区县驻地附近,冷岛分布在东南部高海拔地区及中心城区部分山脉处。2001—2020年主城都市区热岛面积占比随时间呈波动上升趋势,且具有明显的季节变化特征,夏季最强、冬季最弱。     

Assessment of urban heat island effect for different land use–land cover from micrometeorological measurements and remote sensing data for megacity Delhi

Urban heat island intensities (UHI) have been assessed based on in situ measurements and satellite-derived observations for the megacity Delhi during a selected period in March 2010. A network of micrometeorological observational stations was set up across the city. Site selection for stations was based on dominant land use–land cover (LULC) classification. Observed UHI intensities could be classified into high, medium and low categories which overall correlated well with the LULC categories viz. dense built-up, medium dense built-up and green/open areas, respectively. Dense urban areas and highly commercial areas were observed to have highest UHI with maximum hourly magnitude peaking up to 10.7 °C and average daily maximum UHI reaching 8.3 °C. UHI obtained in the study was also compared with satellite-derived land surface temperatures (LST). UHI based on in situ ambient temperatures and satellite-derived land surface temperatures show reasonable comparison during nighttime in terms of UHI magnitude and hotspots. However, the relation was found to be poor during daytime. Further, MODIS-derived LSTs showed overestimation during daytime and underestimation during nighttime when compared with in situ skin temperature measurements. Impact of LULC was also reflected in the difference between ambient temperature and skin temperature at the observation stations as built-up canopies reported largest gradient between air and skin temperature. Also, a comparison of intra-city spatial temperature variations based UHI vis-à-vis a reference rural site temperature-based UHI indicated that UHI can be computed with respect to the station measuring lowest temperature within the urban area in the absence of a reference station in the rural area close to the study area. Comparison with maximum and average UHI of other cities of the world revealed that UHI in Delhi is comparable to other major cities of the world such as London, Tokyo and Beijing and calls for mitigation action plans.     

Urban heat island research from 1991 to 2015: a bibliometric analysis

A bibliometric analysis based on the Science Citation Index-Expanded (SCI-Expanded) database from the Web of Science was performed to review urban heat island (UHI) research from 1991 to 2015 and statistically assess its developments, trends, and directions. In total, 1822 papers published in 352 journals over the past 25 years were analyzed for scientific output; citations; subject categories; major journals; outstanding keywords; and leading countries, institutions, authors, and research collaborations. The number of UHI-related publications has continuously increased since 1991. Meteorology atmospheric sciences, environmental sciences, and construction building technology were the three most frequent subject categories. Building and Environment, International Journal of Climatology, and Theoretical and Applied Climatology were the three most popular publishing journals. The USA and China were the two leading countries in UHI research, contributing 49.56% of the total articles. Chinese Academy of Science, Arizona State University, and China Meteorological Administration published the most UHI articles. Weng QH and Santamouris M were the two most prolific authors. Author keywords were classified into four major groups: (1) research methods and indicators, e.g., remote sensing, field measurement, and models; (2) generation factors, e.g., impervious urban surfaces, urban geometry, waste heat, vegetation, and pollutants; (3) environmental effects, e.g., urban climate, heat wave, ecology, and pollution; and (4) mitigation and adaption strategies, e.g., roof technology cooling, reflective cooling, vegetation cooling, and urban geometry cooling. A comparative analysis of popular issues revealed that UHI determination (intensity, heat source, supporting techniques) remains the central topic, whereas UHI impacts and mitigation strategies are becoming the popular issues that will receive increasing scientific attention in the future. Modeling will continue to be the leading research method, and remote sensing will be used more widely. Additionally, a combination of remote sensing and field measurements with models is expected.     

Carbon dioxide concentration and flux in an urban residential area in Seoul,Korea

The carbon dioxide （CO2） concentrations and fluxes measured at a height of 17.5 m above the ground by a sonic anemometer and an open-path gas analyzer at an urban residential site in Seoul, Korea from February 2011 to January 2012 were analyzed. The annual mean CO2 concentration was found to be 750 mg m-3, with a maximum monthly mean concentration of 827 mg m-3 in January and a minimum value of 679 mg m-3 in August. Meanwhile, the annual mean CO2 flux was found to be 0.45 mg m-2 s-1, with a maximum monthly mean flux of 0.91 mg m-2 s-1 in January and a minimum value of 0.19 mg m-2 s-1 in June. The hourly mean CO2 concentration was found to show a significant diurnal variation; a maximum at 0700-0900 LST and a minimum at 1400-1600 LST, with a large diurnal range in winter and a small one in summer, mainly caused by diurnal changes in mixing height, CO2 flux, and surface complexity. The hourly mean CO2 flux was also found to show a significant diurnal variation, but it showed two maxima at 0700-0900 LST and 2100-2400 LST, and two minima at 1100-1500 LST and 0300-0500 LST, mainly caused by a diurnal pattern in CO2 emissions and sinks from road traffic, domestic heating and cooking by liquefied natural gas use, and the different horizontal distribution of CO2 sources and sinks near the site. Differential advection with respect to wind direction was also found to be a cause of diurnal variations in both the CO2 concentration and flux.     

1984—2014年北京地区不透水地表的时空变化及其温度效应研究

研究城市地表覆盖与地表温度（LST）的关系对改善城市生态环境具有重要科学意义。在Landsat TM数据支持下,利用线性光谱混合分析模型提取不透水地表信息,结合LST和地表热通量,分析不透水地表覆盖度（ISA）和LST的时空变化特征及其相互关系,探讨不透水地表对LST的影响机理。结果表明:1984—2014年北京不透水地表面积迅速增长,中覆盖度比例下降,高覆盖度比例增加;LST从市中心向郊区递减,高温区向外扩张;LST和ISA呈显著正相关,但不是简单的线性关系;ISA处于0.6~0.9时LST上升速率最快,减少ISA在此范围内的不透水地表集中分布可缓解高温区集中的现象。     

Numerical model simulations of boundary-layer dynamics during winter conditions

Summary  A mesoscale numerical model, incorporating a land-surface scheme based on Deardorffs’ approach, is used to study the diurnal variation of the boundary layer structure and surface fluxes during four consecutive days with air temperatures well below zero, snow covered ground and changing synoptic forcing. Model results are evaluated against in-situ measurements performed during the WINTEX field campaign held in Sodankyl?, Northern Finland in March 1997. The results show that the land-surface parameterization employed in the mesoscale model is not able to reproduce the magnitude of the daytime sensible heat fluxes and especially the pronounced maximum observed in the afternoon. Additional model simulations indicate that this drawback is to a large extent removed by the implementation of a shading factor in the original Deardorff scheme. The shading factor, as discussed in Gryning et al. (2001), accounts for the fact that in areas with sparse vegetation and low solar angles, both typical for the northern boreal forests in wintertime, absorption of direct solar radiation is due to an apparent vegetation cover which is much greater than the actual one (defined as the portion of the ground covered by vegetation projected vertically). Moreover, the observed asymmetry in the diurnal variation of the sensible heat flux indicates that there might be a significant heat storage in the vegetation. The implementation of an objective heat storage scheme in the mesoscale model explains part of the observed diurnal variation of the sensible heat flux. Received November 12, 1999 Revised October 4, 2000     

The albedo of temperate and boreal forest and the Northern Hemisphere climate: a sensitivity experiment using the LMD GCM

A deforestation experiment is performed using the Laboratoire de Meteorologie Dynamique Atmospheric General Circulation Model (LMD GCM) to determine the climatic role of the largest vegetation formation in the Northern Hemisphere, localized mostly north of latitude 45°N, which is called the temperate and boreal forest. For this purpose, an iterative albedo scheme based on vegetation type, snow age, snowfall rate and area of snow cover, is developed for snow-covered surfaces. The results show a cooling of Northern Hemisphere soil and an increase in the snow cover when the forest is removed, as found by previous similar experiments.In our study this cooling is related to different causes, depending on the season. It is linked to modifications in the soil radiative properties, like surface albedo, due to the disappearance of forest, and consequently, to a greater exposure of the snow-covered soil underneath. It is also related to alterations in the hydrological cycle, observed mainly in summer and autumn at middle latitudes. The model shows a strong sensitivity to the coupled surface albedo — soil temperature — fractional snow cover response in the spring. A later and longer snowmelt season is also detected.This study adds to our understanding of climatic variation on longer time scales, since it is widely accepted that the formation and disappearance of different vegetation formations is closely related to climatic evolution patterns, in particular on the time scale of the glacial oscillations.