Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 14, 2025
09:55
Surface Renewal: An Advanced Micrometeorological Method for Measuring and Processing Field-Scale Energy Flux Density Data
Published on: December 12, 2013
8.7K
Microscale models and urban heat island studies: a systematic review
Larissa Vieira Zezzo1, Priscila Pereira Coltri2, Vincent Dubreuil3
1Institute of Geosciences, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), R. Carlos Gomes, 250 - Code Postal: 13083-855. Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil. larisvz@gmail.com.
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment
|October 9, 2023
Summary
Urban climate analysis often lacks sufficient field data. This review highlights numerical models as crucial for urban heat island studies and urban planning, emphasizing the need for increased scientific investment.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Urban Planning
- Climatology
Background:
- Traditional urban climate analysis relies on weather stations, surveys, or satellite imagery, often facing data scarcity issues.
- Urban heat island (UHI) analysis is vital for urban planning, requiring accurate climate data for territorial organization and climate projection.
- Numerical models are increasingly recognized for simulating urban climate conditions, offering an alternative to traditional methods.
Approach:
- A comprehensive literature review was conducted, evaluating over 200 scientific documents on urban heat island analysis methodologies.
- The review focused specifically on the application and types of numerical models used in urban climate studies.
- Sixty-eight selected documents reporting diverse modeling approaches were analyzed in detail.
Key Points:
- Most urban climate research still employs traditional fieldwork methods, while model-based studies are less common and concentrated in the Northern Hemisphere.
- Elsevier publisher journals, known for their interdisciplinary approach, published a significant portion of the reviewed articles.
- Prominent numerical models identified include ENVI-met, SOLWEIG, PALM-4U, RayMan, and TEB.
Conclusions:
- This review underscores the challenges in acquiring adequate field data for UHI studies and urban planning, reinforcing the importance of such data.
- The advancement of numerical models for urban climate simulation is significantly dependent on dedicated scientific investment in the field.
- There is a clear need to bridge the gap between traditional methods and advanced modeling techniques to improve urban climate analysis and planning.
Related Concept Videos
02:46Quantifying Heat
54.6K
Thermal Energy Microscopically, thermal energy is the kinetic energy associated with the random motion of atoms and molecules. Temperature is a quantitative measure of “hot” or “cold”, which depends on the amount of thermal energy. When the atoms and molecules in an object are moving or vibrating quickly, they have a higher average kinetic energy (KE) (or higher thermal energy), and the object is perceived as “hot”, or it is described as being at a...
54.6K
01:30Typical Model Studies
366
Fluid mechanics model studies often utilize scaled-down systems to predict fluid behavior in full-scale environments, such as river flows, dam spillways, and structures interacting with open surfaces. Maintaining Froude number similarity in river models is crucial, as it replicates surface flow features like wave patterns and velocities.
366
01:20Mechanisms of Heat Transfer II
3.3K
In convection, thermal energy is carried by the large-scale flow of matter. Ocean currents and large-scale atmospheric circulation, which result from the buoyancy of warm air and water, transfer hot air from the tropics toward the poles and cold air from the poles toward the tropics. The Earth’s rotation interacts with those flows, causing the observed eastward flow of air in the temperate zones. Convection dominates heat transfer by air, and the amount of available space for the airflow...
3.3K
01:14Mechanisms of Heat Transfer
339
Heat transfer between the human body and its environment occurs through four main mechanisms: conduction, convection, radiation, and evaporation.
Conduction, accounting for approximately 3% of body heat loss at rest, is the process of exchanging heat between molecules of two materials in direct contact. This can result in both heat loss and gain. For instance, when the body is submerged in water, which conducts heat 20 times more effectively than air, it can either lose or gain significant...
Conduction, accounting for approximately 3% of body heat loss at rest, is the process of exchanging heat between molecules of two materials in direct contact. This can result in both heat loss and gain. For instance, when the body is submerged in water, which conducts heat 20 times more effectively than air, it can either lose or gain significant...
339
01:14Mechanisms of Heat Transfer I
4.3K
Just as interesting as the effects of heat transfer on a system are the methods by which the heat transfer occur. Whenever there is a temperature difference, heat transfer occurs. It may occur rapidly, such as through a cooking pan, or slowly, such as through the walls of a picnic ice box. So many processes involve heat transfer that it is hard to imagine a situation where no heat transfer occurs. Yet, every heat transfer takes place by only three methods: conduction, convection, and radiation.
4.3K
01:12Modeling and Similitude
273
Scaled modeling is a fundamental technique in engineering, enabling the study of large and complex systems by creating smaller, manageable replicas that recreate critical characteristics of the original. In hydrology and civil infrastructure, for example, scaled models of dams help analyze water flow, turbulence, and pressure. This method allows for accurate predictions of real-world behavior within a controlled environment, significantly reducing the cost and time involved in full-scale...
273