Spatial and temporal distribution of urban heat islands

Alexandre Rosa Dos Santos; Felício Santos de Oliveira; Aderbal Gomes da Silva; José Marinaldo Gleriani; Wantuelfer Gonçalves; Giselle Lemos Moreira; Felipe Gimenes Silva; Elvis Ricardo Figueira Branco; Marks Melo Moura; Rosane Gomes da Silva; Ronie Silva Juvanhol; Kaíse Barbosa de Souza; Carlos Antonio Alvares Soares Ribeiro; Vagner Tebaldi de Queiroz; Adilson Vidal Costa; Alexandre Simões Lorenzon; Getulio Fonseca Domingues; Gustavo Eduardo Marcatti; Nero Lemos Martins de Castro; Rafael Tassinari Resende; Duberli Elera Gonzales; Lucas Arthur de Almeida Telles; Thaisa Ribeiro Teixeira; Gleissy Mary Amaral Dino Alves Dos Santos; Pedro Henrique Santos Mota

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.05.275

Spatial and temporal distribution of urban heat islands

Sci Total Environ. 2017 Dec 15:605-606:946-956. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.05.275. Epub 2017 Jul 6.

Authors

Alexandre Rosa Dos Santos¹, Felício Santos de Oliveira², Aderbal Gomes da Silva³, José Marinaldo Gleriani⁴, Wantuelfer Gonçalves⁵, Giselle Lemos Moreira², Felipe Gimenes Silva⁶, Elvis Ricardo Figueira Branco², Marks Melo Moura², Rosane Gomes da Silva², Ronie Silva Juvanhol², Kaíse Barbosa de Souza², Carlos Antonio Alvares Soares Ribeiro⁷, Vagner Tebaldi de Queiroz⁸, Adilson Vidal Costa⁸, Alexandre Simões Lorenzon⁹, Getulio Fonseca Domingues⁹, Gustavo Eduardo Marcatti⁹, Nero Lemos Martins de Castro⁹, Rafael Tassinari Resende⁹, Duberli Elera Gonzales⁹, Lucas Arthur de Almeida Telles⁹, Thaisa Ribeiro Teixeira⁹, Gleissy Mary Amaral Dino Alves Dos Santos⁹, Pedro Henrique Santos Mota⁹

Affiliations

¹ Federal University of Espírito Santo/UFES, Center of Agricultural Sciences, Alto Universitário, s/n 29500-000 Alegre, ES, Brazil. Electronic address: alexandre.santos@pq.cnpq.br.
² Federal University of Espírito Santo/UFES, Center of Agricultural Sciences, Alto Universitário, s/n 29500-000 Alegre, ES, Brazil.
³ Federal University of São João Del-Rei, Department of Agricultural Sciences, AC Sete Lagoas, 35701970 Sete Lagoas, MG, Brazil.
⁴ Federal University of Viçosa/UFV, Av. Peter Henry Rolfs, s/n 36570-000 Viçosa, MG, Brazil. Electronic address: gleriani@ufv.br.
⁵ Federal University of Viçosa/UFV, Av. Peter Henry Rolfs, s/n 36570-000 Viçosa, MG, Brazil. Electronic address: w.goncav@ufv.br.
⁶ Federal University of Espírito Santo/UFES, Center of Agricultural Sciences, Alto Universitário, s/n 29500-000 Alegre, ES, Brazil. Electronic address: felipe.silva@cfs.ifmt.edu.br.
⁷ Federal University of Viçosa/UFV, Av. Peter Henry Rolfs, s/n 36570-000 Viçosa, MG, Brazil. Electronic address: cribeiro@ufv.br.
⁸ Federal University of Espírito Santo/UFES, Center of Exact Sciences, Natural and Health, Alto Universitário, s/n 29500-000 Alegre, ES, Brazil.
⁹ Federal University of Viçosa/UFV, Av. Peter Henry Rolfs, s/n 36570-000 Viçosa, MG, Brazil.

PMID: 28693109
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.05.275

Abstract

The formation of an urban heat island (UHI) is one of the most common impacts of the urbanization process. To mitigate the effects of UHI, the planning of urban forests (e.g., creation of parks, forests and afforestation streets) has been the major tool applied in this context. Thus, the aim of this study is to evaluate the spatial and temporal distribution of heat islands in Vila Velha, ES, Brazil using the mono-window algorithm. The study followed these methodological steps: 1) mapping of urban green areas through a photointerpretation screen; 2) application of the mono-window algorithm to obtain the spatial and temporal patterns of land surface temperature (LST); 3) correlation between LST and the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and normalized difference build-up index (NDBI); 4) application of ecological evaluation index. The results showed that the mean values of LST in urban areas were at least 2.34 to 7.19°C higher than undeveloped areas. Moreover, the positive correlation between LST and NDBI showed an amplifying effect of the developed areas for UHI, while areas with a predominance of vegetation attenuated the effect of UHI. Urban centers, clustered in some parts of the city, received the worst ecological assessment index. Finally, the adoption of measures to guide the urban forest planning within urban centers is necessary to mitigate the effect of heat islands and provide thermal comfort in urban areas.

Keywords: Land surface temperature; Thermal comfort; Vegetation cover.