There is a consensus that Urban Heat Island phenomenon - UHI occurs in every large city. This effect is characterized by higher air temperatures in cities than in the neighboring countryside at night. However, to date, there has been no systematic study on the Fortaleza case, the Brazil’s 5th largest city. By the comparison between screen-level air temperature measured by two automatic weather stations, one located in the city and the other in the neighboring region, this work shows the occurrence of the UHI in Fortaleza, even during the rainy season. In an attempt to find some effect of the UHI on precipitation (and vice-versa), historical series of air temperature and precipitation were analyzed from 1966 to 2020. Besides the considerable increase in air temperature over the years, a slight downward trend was observed in UHI and even more in precipitation between the hours of 15:00 and 21:00 (local time). However, one believes that these trends may be related to climate change at large scale rather than an urban scale.
UHI in Fortaleza and trends on screen-level air temperature and precipitation
This Research Object (RO) encapsulates the various steps leading to the creation of an "Urban Heat Island" (UHI) effect analysis tool tailored for the UseGalaxy.eu platform, providing an accessible resource for a broad user base, including urban planners, educators, and community members. The tool predominantly utilizes ERA5-Land meteorological reanalysis data to characterize and quantify the UHI effect. It will also offer a straightforward approach to examining the temperature contrasts between urban and surrounding rural areas either defined by the user or delineated with the aid of satellite data to ensure accurate urban-rural categorization. The interactive interface of the tool is meant to ensure that users can engage with the data without requiring specialized technical knowledge, promoting environmental awareness and facilitating informed decision-making for heat mitigation and urban planning. The objective of the integration with the UseGalaxy.eu platform is to democratize access to complex climate data, fostering community-driven solutions to combat the challenges posed by increased urban temperatures.
Fouilloux, Anne, and Jean Iaquinta. "An "Urban Heat Island" tool in Galaxy." ROHub. Mar 11 ,2024. https://w3id.org/ro-id/083e5bf4-19f5-4e2a-8e27-f9b7f1f59abc.
This edition of Luke Howard’s CLIMATE OF LONDON has been produced by the International Association for Urban Climate (IAUC). While Howard is best known for his work on clouds1, he was also the first to recognise the effect that urban areas have on local climate. Much of his studies on climate, including his description, analysis and observations, are contained in CLIMATE , which can reasonably claim to be the first textbook on climatology. Despite its title, the majority of the book is concerned with weather and climate in general, rather than that of the London metropolis. Nevertheless, one hundred and thirty-two years after its publication, Chandler dedicated his study of the spatial and temporal character of metropolis’ climate to Luke Howard (1772-1864), whom he described as the pioneer of urban climatic studies.
Politics/Government policy/Interior policy/Housing and urban planning policy
Arts, culture and entertainment/Arts and entertainment/Visual arts/Architecture
The objective of the integration with the UseGalaxy.eu platform is to democratize access to complex climate data, fostering community-driven solutions to combat the challenges posed by increased urban temperatures.
The tool predominantly utilizes ERA5-Land meteorological reanalysis data to characterize and quantify the UHI effect.
This Research Object (RO) encapsulates the various steps leading to the creation of an "Urban Heat Island" (UHI) effect analysis tool tailored for the UseGalaxy.eu platform, providing an accessible resource for a broad user base, including urban planners, educators, and community members.