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Urban Heat Island Circulation in Göteborg, Sweden

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Summary

The paper presents a study of the Urban Heat Island Circulation (UHIC) in Göteborg, Sweden. Observations and recordings have been carried out from 1981 to 1986 during winter nights with anticyclonic weather conditions. The UHIC develops in general at a large negative net radiation balance, when the heat island intensity is at least 2.5°C, the wind speed less than 3 m/s and the sky is clear. If the weather conditions are favourable the UHIC starts 4–6 hours after midnight and stops a few hours after sunrise. An increase in cloud cover during the late night will not prevent the development of the UHIC. The UHIC layer extends to 40–70 metres in the vertical direction and to 10–13 km in the horizontal direction. The UHIC layer is capped by an inversion and the flow is almost independent of the direction of the regional flow. The UHIC is of great importance for the concentrations of air pollutions in Göteborg, as it transports both polluted and clean air. The study is a part of a clean air programme in the Göteborg area.

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Eliasson, I., Holmer, B. Urban Heat Island Circulation in Göteborg, Sweden. Theor Appl Climatol 42, 187–196 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00866874

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