Thermal Comfort in Outdoor Spaces: field studies in Greece

Abstract

Microclimatic conditions are a critical parameter for the use of outdoor spaces in the urban environment. Responses to the microclimate may be unconscious, but they often result in a different use of open space in different climatic conditions. In this study thermal comfort conditions outdoors are examined through field surveys in Athens, where extensive environmental monitoring has been carried out in parallel to human surveys with interviews and questionnaires with the users of the spaces. Microclimatic parameters are examined in relation to subjective thermal sensation determining thermal comfort outdoors, along with an attempt to develop models for quantifying thermal comfort conditions, based on publicly available environmental data from meteorological stations. Refining such models for design purposes is also examined, investigating modification parameters on comfort models due to the microclimate for design purposes, in the form of correction factors.