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Desert heat island study in winter by mobile transect and remote sensing techniques

Theoretical and Applied Climatology volume 98, pages 323–335 (2009)Cite this article

Abstract

A familiar problem in urban environments is the urban heat island (UHI), which potentially increases air conditioning demands, raise pollution levels, and could modify precipitation patterns. The magnitude and pattern of UHI effects have been major concerns of a lot of urban environment studies. Typically, research on UHI magnitudes in arid regions (such as Phoenix, AZ, USA) focuses on summer. UHI magnitudes in Phoenix (more than three million population) attain values in excess of 5°C. This study investigated the early winter period—a time when summer potential evapotranspiration >250 mm has diminished to <90 mm. An analysis of the winter magnitude of the heat island in Phoenix has been studied very little, and therefore with the aid of automobile transects, fixed stations, and remote sensing techniques, we investigated a portion of the large Phoenix metropolitan area known as the East Valley. The eastern fringes of the metropolitan area abut against breaks in sloping terrain. The highest UHI intensity observed was >8.0°C, comparable to summertime UHI conditions. Through analysis of the Oke (1998) weather factor ΦW, it was determined thermally induced nighttime cool drainage winds could account for inflating the UHI magnitude in winter.

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Acknowledgments

The support of the Architecture and Building Institute, Ministry of The Interior and National Science Council (project NSC94-2211-E-006-069 and 096-2917-I-006-011), Republic of China (Taiwan) is gratefully acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Landscape Architecture, National Chin-Yi University, Taichung, 41111, Taiwan

    Chen-Yi Sun

  2. School of Geographical Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287-5302, USA

    Anthony J. Brazel, Winston T. L. Chow & Brent C. Hedquist

  3. Mars Space Flight Facility, School of Earth & Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287-6305, USA

    Lela Prashad

Authors
  1. Chen-Yi Sun
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  2. Anthony J. Brazel
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  3. Winston T. L. Chow
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  4. Brent C. Hedquist
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  5. Lela Prashad
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Correspondence to Chen-Yi Sun.

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Sun, CY., Brazel, A.J., Chow, W.T.L. et al. Desert heat island study in winter by mobile transect and remote sensing techniques. Theor Appl Climatol 98, 323–335 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-009-0120-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-009-0120-2

Keywords

  • Asphalt
  • Normalize Difference Vegetation Index
  • Urban Heat Island
  • Surface Wind Speed
  • Local Standard Time