Publication | Open Access
The Use of NOAA AVHRR Data for Assessment of the Urban Heat Island Effect
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1993
Year
EngineeringLand UseUrban Climate ImpactUrban Heat IslandLand CoverSatellite DataUrban WeatherChange AnalysisEarth ScienceSocial SciencesVegetation-atmosphere InteractionsAtmospheric ScienceUrban MeteorologyMicrometeorologyUrban–rural DifferencesForest MeteorologyUrban ClimatologyClimate ChangeHydrometeorologyMeteorologyGeographyUrban EcologyUrban Heat MitigationUrban MaterialsNoaa Avhrr DataEarth Observation DataClimatologyRemote SensingVegetation IndexUrban Climate
The study aimed to evaluate whether satellite-derived vegetation indices could assess the urban heat island effect on minimum air temperatures. The authors derived vegetation indices and surface temperatures from NOAA AVHRR data for 37 cities and nearby rural areas, computed urban–rural differences, compared them to observed minimum temperature differences, and examined temporal consistency from daily to monthly intervals. Normalized difference vegetation index differences between urban and rural regions were linearly related to observed minimum temperature differences, with stronger relationships when accounting for elevation and using biweekly or monthly intervals, and explained more variation than population-based methods, suggesting satellite data can provide a globally consistent approach to assess urban heat island bias.
A vegetation index and a radiative surface temperature were derived from satellite data acquired at approximately 1330 LST for each of 37 cities and for their respective nearby rural regions from 28 June through 8 August 1991. Urban–rural differences for the vegetation index and the surface temperatures were computed and then compared to observed urban–rural differences in minimum air temperatures. The purpose of these comparisons was to evaluate the use of satellite data to assess the influence of the urban environment on observed minimum air temperatures (the urban heat island effect). The temporal consistency of the data, from daily data to weekly, biweekly, and monthly intervals, was also evaluated. The satellite-derived normalized difference (ND) vegetation-index data, sampled over urban and rural regions composed of a variety of land surface environments, were linearly related to the difference in observed urban and rural minimum temperatures. The relationship between the ND index and observed differences in minimum temperature was improved when analyses were restricted by elevation differences between the sample locations and when biweekly or monthly intervals were utilized. The difference in the ND index between urban and rural regions appears to be an indicator of the difference in surface properties (evaporation and heat storage capacity) between the two environments that are responsible for differences in urban and rural minimum temperatures. The urban and rural differences in the ND index explain a greater amount of the variation observed in minimum temperature differences than past analyses that utilized urban population data. The use of satellite data may contribute to a globally consistent method for analysis of urban heat island bias.