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Atmosphere
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Urban Heat Islands and Global Warming (2nd Edition)
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Urban Heat Islands and Global Warming (2nd Edition)

A special issue of Atmosphere (ISSN 2073-4433). This special issue belongs to the section "Meteorology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 May 2024) | Viewed by 16005

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Sen Chiao

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Guest Editor
NOAA Cooperative Science Center in Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Howard University, Washington, DC 20059, USA
Interests: air quality modeling; stratospheric ozone; aerosols
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Robert Pasken

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Guest Editor
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Saint Louis University, St. Louis, MO 63103, USA
Interests: weather; radar meteorology; real meteorology; meteorological aspects of emergency management
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Ricardo Sakai

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Guest Editor
Department of Physics and Astronomy, Howard University, Washington, DC 20059, USA
Interests: LiDAR; radiosonde; PBL height; seasonal variation; Surface data
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Belay Demoz

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Guest Editor
1. Department of Physics, University of Maryland，Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD 21250, USA
2. Director, Joint Center for Earth Systems Technology, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD 21250, USA
Interests: atmospheric dynamics; lidar; climate observations; atmospheric instrumentation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue is a follow-up of the first Special Issue entitled "Urban Heat Islands and Global Warming" (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/atmosphere/special_issues/Urban_Heat_Islands) published in Atmosphere in 2022." The intensity of heat islands can vary significantly between cities and may cause impacts on energy consumption, air quality, public health, and social equity. Although the urban heat island effect has had little connection to the global climate, recent research findings suggest that on a global average, urban heat island warming will probably be equivalent to about half the warming caused by climate change by the year 2050. In a city that may experience warming from climate change, this could exacerbate the risk of vulnerable populations in the community living under heat island conditions.

This Special Issue aims to solicit research related to urban heat islands from local to global perspectives in relation to: 1) weather and climate extremes; 2) energy consumption, air quality, human health, and natural resources; 3) adaptation and mitigation strategies; and 4) social equity and environmental sustainability.

Dr. Sen Chiao
Dr. Robert Pasken
Dr. Ricardo Sakai
Prof. Dr. Belay Demoz
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Atmosphere is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • urban heat islands
  • global warming
  • climate change
  • weather and climate extremes

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

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20 pages, 8585 KiB  
Article
Multi-Scale Urban Natural Ventilation Climate Guidance: A Case Study in the Shijiazhuang Metropolitan Area
by Shuo Zhang, Xiaoyi Fang, Chen Cheng, Jing Chen, Fengxia Guo, Ying Yu and Shanshan Yang
Atmosphere 2024, 15(6), 676; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos15060676 - 31 May 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1054
Abstract
The rapid development of urbanization has caused obstructed urban natural ventilation and the contribution rate of urbanization is relatively high. Therefore, there is an urgent need for urban development planning that should respect natural ventilation and local climate to reduce negative impacts. By [...] Read more.
The rapid development of urbanization has caused obstructed urban natural ventilation and the contribution rate of urbanization is relatively high. Therefore, there is an urgent need for urban development planning that should respect natural ventilation and local climate to reduce negative impacts. By optimizing the urban construction layout to reduce obstruction and leave a passageway for wind to blow in, the natural ventilation environment could be improved. This paper presents a promising approach for natural ventilation planning at both the city and community scales. Based on the assessment of wind environment, heat island intensity, and ventilation potential, the results revealed that winds blowing from the western and northern mountainous area of Shijiazhuang play a natural ventilation inlet role which can provide clean air. The SSHI and SHI were mainly distributed within the Second Ring Road, which has a large proportion of the low ventilation potential level. Thus, six first-class ventilation corridors and thirteen secondary corridors were recommended, which were set to be adapted to the dominant wind direction. Subsequently, an urban climate analysis map (UCAnMap) was developed considering climate sensitivity, and planning recommendations were provided for different climate zones. The relationship between architectural spatial structure and ventilation efficiency was analyzed; the results revealed that increasing the height of the buildings will decrease the proportion of comfortable wind zones, and the overall ventilation efficiency will weaken, so the average building height of a typical block should be controlled within 45 m, which matches ventilation performance requirements. The ventilation efficiency of the block has a certain negative correlation with the building density, and as the building density decreased by more than 10%, the proportion of the comfortable wind zones could increase by 4–5%. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Heat Islands and Global Warming (2nd Edition))
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19 pages, 16563 KiB  
Article
Quantifying the Impact of Urban Growth on Urban Surface Heat Islands in the Bangkok Metropolitan Region, Thailand
by Pawinee Iamtrakul, Apinya Padon and Sararad Chayphong
Atmosphere 2024, 15(1), 100; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos15010100 - 12 Jan 2024
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3884
Abstract
The urban built environment, comprising structures, roads, and various facilities, plays a key role in the formation of urban heat islands, which inflict considerable damage upon human society. This phenomenon is particularly pronounced in urban areas characterized by the rapid growth and concentration [...] Read more.
The urban built environment, comprising structures, roads, and various facilities, plays a key role in the formation of urban heat islands, which inflict considerable damage upon human society. This phenomenon is particularly pronounced in urban areas characterized by the rapid growth and concentration of populations, a global trend, notably exemplified in megacities such as Bangkok, Thailand. The global trend of urbanization has witnessed unprecedented growth in recent decades, with cities transforming into megametropolises that profoundly impact changes in urban temperature, specifically the urban heat island (UHI) phenomenon induced by the rapid growth of urban areas. Elevated urban concentrations lead to increased city density, contributing to higher temperatures within the urban environment compared to the surrounding areas. The evolving land-use surface has assumed heightened significance due to urban development, necessitating accelerated efforts to mitigate urban heat islands. This study aims to quantify the influence of urban growth on urban surface temperature in Bangkok and its surrounding areas. The inverse relationship between urban temperature and land surface temperature (LST), coupled with urban area density, was examined using Landsat 5 and 8 satellite imagery. The analysis revealed a positive correlation between higher temperatures and levels of urban growth. Areas characterized by high-rise structures and economic activities experienced the most pronounced impact of the heat island phenomenon. The city exhibited a notable correlation between high density and high temperatures (high–high), signifying that increased density contributes to elevated temperatures due to heat dissipation (significant correlation of R2 = 0.8582). Conversely, low-temperature, low-density cities (low–low) with a dispersed layout demonstrated effective cooling of the surrounding area, resulting in a significant correlation with lower local temperatures (R2 = 0.7404). These findings provide valuable insights to assist governments and related agencies in expediting planning and policy development aimed at reducing heat in urban areas and steering sustainable urban development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Heat Islands and Global Warming (2nd Edition))
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21 pages, 7836 KiB  
Article
Assessment of Changes in Heatwave Aspects over Saudi Arabia during the Last Four Decades
by Abdulhaleem Labban, Mostafa Morsy, Abdallah Abdeldym, Heshmat Abdel Basset and Motirh Al-Mutairi
Atmosphere 2023, 14(11), 1667; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos14111667 - 10 Nov 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2938
Abstract
Heatwave (HW) number (HWN), frequency (HWF), duration (HWD), magnitude (HWM), and amplitude (HWA) are key aspects for interpreting and understanding HW characteristics worldwide. Most previous HW studies over the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) focused only on the temperature extremes, so this study [...] Read more.
Heatwave (HW) number (HWN), frequency (HWF), duration (HWD), magnitude (HWM), and amplitude (HWA) are key aspects for interpreting and understanding HW characteristics worldwide. Most previous HW studies over the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) focused only on the temperature extremes, so this study aims to assess the decadal changes, anomalies, and spatiotemporal variations in the five HW aspects over KSA during the last four decades (1982–2021) using the ClimPACT2 software. Daily gridded (0.25° × 0.25°) maximum (TX) and minimum (TN) temperatures from the ECMWF-ERA5 reanalysis dataset were used to compute these heat wave (HW) aspects. The HW aspects were derived in ClimPACT2 using the Excess Heat Factor (EHF), the 90th percentile of TX (TX90), and the 90th percentile of TN (TN90), all based on the reference climate period of 1982–2011. The results showed that the decadal sum and anomaly of the five HW aspects increased gradually during the last four decades (1982–2021). The three indices showed that the maximum decadal sum of HWN (42 events), HWF (255 days), and HWD (145 days) occurred in the last decade. Additionally, the last decade has the maximum decadal sum of HWM (175–463 °C) and HWA (189–471 °C) as derived from TX90 and TN90, which is confirmed by EHF, with ranges of 7–58 and 15–185 °C2, respectively. Finally, the periods 2015–2021 and 1984–1986 recorded the highest and lowest values of annual HW aspects, respectively, across the study period. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Heat Islands and Global Warming (2nd Edition))
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20 pages, 7858 KiB  
Article
Numerical Analysis of Various Heat Countermeasures: Effects on Energy Consumption and Indoor Thermal Comfort in Densely Built Wooden House Area
by Shanshan Liu, Ronnen Levinson and Daisuke Narumi
Atmosphere 2023, 14(10), 1566; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos14101566 - 16 Oct 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2025
Abstract
Densely built areas with poor thermal insulation suffer from high thermal environmental risks and generally consume high energy in summer. Determining the relationship between density and energy consumption is necessary, particularly when implementing urban heat island (UHI) countermeasures. This study evaluated the effects [...] Read more.
Densely built areas with poor thermal insulation suffer from high thermal environmental risks and generally consume high energy in summer. Determining the relationship between density and energy consumption is necessary, particularly when implementing urban heat island (UHI) countermeasures. This study evaluated the effects of density and UHI countermeasures on the energy consumption and indoor thermal comfort of a detached house in a typical densely built wooden house area in Yokohama City, Japan. Three densities and six countermeasures were considered. Annual hourly simulations based on the SCIENCE-Vent thermal environment simulation model yielded the following results: in densely built wooden house areas, the energy consumption and thermal discomfort increased with density. The green roof yielded the largest energy savings in the cooling and heating seasons, demonstrating the highest annual energy savings with 5.7%. Density had little impact on rooftop countermeasures, but the effect of the high-reflectance walls increased with density, and the reduction in annual energy consumption (air conditioning and lighting) is 2.6%, 3.0%, 3.6% in 37%, 47%, and 59% density cases, respectively. The impact of thermal countermeasures on indoor thermal comfort varied according to the thermal control mechanism. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Heat Islands and Global Warming (2nd Edition))
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15 pages, 3043 KiB  
Article
Impacts of UHI on Heating and Cooling Loads in Residential Buildings in Cities of Different Sizes in Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei Region in China
by Fanchao Meng, Guoyu Ren and Ruixue Zhang
Atmosphere 2023, 14(7), 1193; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos14071193 - 24 Jul 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1976
Abstract
The heating and cooling energy consumption levels of urban buildings account for a large and rapidly growing proportion of the total end-use energy consumption of society. The urban heat island (UHI) effect is an important factor influencing the spatiotemporal variations in the heating [...] Read more.
The heating and cooling energy consumption levels of urban buildings account for a large and rapidly growing proportion of the total end-use energy consumption of society. The urban heat island (UHI) effect is an important factor influencing the spatiotemporal variations in the heating and cooling energy consumption levels of buildings. However, there is a lack of research on the impact of the UHI on the heating and cooling energy consumption of buildings in cities of different sizes in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration, which is the most urbanized region in northern China. We selected rural reference stations using the remote sensing method, and applied an hourly data set from automatic weather stations, to examine the impact of the UHI on the typical residential building heating and cooling loads in three cities of varied sizes in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration through building energy simulation. The main conclusions were as follows. As the UHI intensity (UHII) increased, the heating load difference between urban and rural areas decreased, while the cooling load difference between urban and rural areas increased in the cities. The average daily heating loads in the urban areas of Beijing, Tianjin, and Shijiazhuang were 8.14, 10.71, and 2.79% lower than those in their rural areas, respectively, while the average daily cooling loads in the urban areas were 6.88, 6.70, and 0.27% higher than those in their rural areas, respectively. Moreover, the absolute hourly load differences between urban and rural areas were significantly larger during the heating periods than during the cooling periods, with the former characterized by being strong at night and weak during the day. During the peak energy load period, the contribution of the UHI to the peak load of residential buildings varied between the cities. During the stable high-load period, from 18:00 to 07:00 the next day in the heating periods (from 18:00 to 05:00 the next day in the cooling periods), the hourly loads in the urban areas of Beijing, Tianjin, and Shijiazhuang were 3.15 (2.48), 3.88 (1.51), and 1.07% (1.09%) lower (higher) than those in their rural areas, respectively. Our analysis highlights the necessity to differentiate the energy supplies for the heating and cooling of urban buildings in different sized cities in the region. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Heat Islands and Global Warming (2nd Edition))
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Review

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32 pages, 7230 KiB  
Review
Exploring the Complexities of Urban Forms and Urban Heat Islands: Insights from the Literature, Methodologies, and Current Status in Morocco
by Khaoula Benaomar and Abdelkader Outzourhit
Atmosphere 2024, 15(7), 822; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos15070822 - 9 Jul 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2355
Abstract
The Urban Heat Island phenomenon (UHI), characterized by elevated temperatures in urban areas compared to their rural surroundings, is highly exacerbated by urbanization and climate change. Understanding the complex relationship between UHI effect and urban form is crucial for effective urban planning and [...] Read more.
The Urban Heat Island phenomenon (UHI), characterized by elevated temperatures in urban areas compared to their rural surroundings, is highly exacerbated by urbanization and climate change. Understanding the complex relationship between UHI effect and urban form is crucial for effective urban planning and climate mitigation strategies. This paper examines the multifaceted connection between UHIs and urban forms, exploring various methods used to study this relationship. Through a review of the existing literature, we analyze the influence of various urban characteristics on the intensity and spatial distribution of UHIs. Furthermore, we discuss the key methods and technologies, such as remote sensing and modeling, used in advancing our understanding of UHI–urban form interactions. This study then delves into the literature on UHIs within the specific context of Morocco, identifying research gaps and emphasizing the need for more comprehensive research to address them. By translating study findings into actionable urban solutions, this paper suggests contextual mitigation strategies based on the research outcomes. Finally, by synthesizing current research findings and methodologies, this paper seeks to provide insights into the complexities of UHI dynamics and their implications for climate resilience, highlighting the potential of research for forging sustainable and climate-conscious planning strategies in Morocco and across the broader MENA region. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Heat Islands and Global Warming (2nd Edition))
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