Mobile measurements of microclimatic variables through the central area of Singapore: An analysis from the pedestrian perspective
High-density cities, such as Singapore, are currently facing the urban heat island (UHI) effect, a phenomenon that leads to higher air and surface temperatures within the urban area in comparison to the surroundings and is one of the most critical anthropogenic climate change-related environmental i...
| Authors: | ; ; ; ; ; |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Status: | Published version |
| Publication date: | 2022 |
| Country: | España |
| Institution: | Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya) |
| Repository: | Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:recercat.cat:10459.1/83530 |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2022.103986 http://hdl.handle.net/10459.1/83530 |
| Access Level: | Open access |
| Keyword: | Microclimate Outdoor thermal comfort Urban heat island Greenery Transect Sky view factor |
| _version_ | 1878729168959569920 |
|---|---|
| author | Chàfer, Marta |
| author2 | Tan, Chun Liang Cureau, Roberta Jacoby Wong, Nyuk Hien Pisello, Anna Laura Cabeza, Luisa F. |
| author2_role | author author author author author |
| author_browse | Cabeza, Luisa F. Chàfer, Marta Cureau, Roberta Jacoby Pisello, Anna Laura Tan, Chun Liang Wong, Nyuk Hien |
| author_facet | Chàfer, Marta Tan, Chun Liang Cureau, Roberta Jacoby Wong, Nyuk Hien Pisello, Anna Laura Cabeza, Luisa F. |
| author_role | author |
| collection | Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya |
| description | High-density cities, such as Singapore, are currently facing the urban heat island (UHI) effect, a phenomenon that leads to higher air and surface temperatures within the urban area in comparison to the surroundings and is one of the most critical anthropogenic climate change-related environmental issues for contemporary high-density cities. This study aims to investigate the effect of different urban morphologies such as high-rise and low-rise buildings, green areas, and water bodies on the urban microclimate in Singapore. Mobile measurements taken from a pedestrian perspective were conducted for the first time in the central area of Singapore to explore the severity of the UHI effect through distinctive urban morphologies. The Sky View Factor (SVF) was the metric used to quantify these characteristics. During daytime, the air temperature was higher when SVF increased, except for the water body area. Shading showed to be an important factor to decreasing air temperature in the tropics. Reductions by up to 4.5 ºC were observed due to the buildings shading during daytime, while the cooling effect of vegetation reduced the air temperature by up to 4 ºC during the daytime and 1 ºC at night-time. Thus, this study revealed a strong relationship between the decrease in air temperature and greenery coverage in the city. Therefore, understanding the relationship between urban morphology and microclimate conditions may better drive sustainable urban planning and development in the tropics. Finally, it was demonstrated the importance of using mobile monitoring to retrieve granular data that allows identifying specific environmental issues on a hyperlocal scale, which would not be recognised through other monitoring techniques. |
| eu_rights_str_mv | openAccess |
| format | article |
| id | ES_02bf680d4d6d23588c0eacee02fef4e8 |
| institution | Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya) |
| instname_str | Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya) |
| network_acronym_str | ES |
| network_name_str | España |
| oai_identifier_str | oai:recercat.cat:10459.1/83530 |
| publishDate | 2022 |
| publishDateSort | 2022 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| publisherStr | Elsevier |
| reponame_str | Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya |
| spelling | Mobile measurements of microclimatic variables through the central area of Singapore: An analysis from the pedestrian perspective Chàfer, Marta Tan, Chun Liang Cureau, Roberta Jacoby Wong, Nyuk Hien Pisello, Anna Laura Cabeza, Luisa F. Microclimate Outdoor thermal comfort Urban heat island Greenery Transect Sky view factor High-density cities, such as Singapore, are currently facing the urban heat island (UHI) effect, a phenomenon that leads to higher air and surface temperatures within the urban area in comparison to the surroundings and is one of the most critical anthropogenic climate change-related environmental issues for contemporary high-density cities. This study aims to investigate the effect of different urban morphologies such as high-rise and low-rise buildings, green areas, and water bodies on the urban microclimate in Singapore. Mobile measurements taken from a pedestrian perspective were conducted for the first time in the central area of Singapore to explore the severity of the UHI effect through distinctive urban morphologies. The Sky View Factor (SVF) was the metric used to quantify these characteristics. During daytime, the air temperature was higher when SVF increased, except for the water body area. Shading showed to be an important factor to decreasing air temperature in the tropics. Reductions by up to 4.5 ºC were observed due to the buildings shading during daytime, while the cooling effect of vegetation reduced the air temperature by up to 4 ºC during the daytime and 1 ºC at night-time. Thus, this study revealed a strong relationship between the decrease in air temperature and greenery coverage in the city. Therefore, understanding the relationship between urban morphology and microclimate conditions may better drive sustainable urban planning and development in the tropics. Finally, it was demonstrated the importance of using mobile monitoring to retrieve granular data that allows identifying specific environmental issues on a hyperlocal scale, which would not be recognised through other monitoring techniques. This work was partially funded by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades de España (RTI2018-093849-B-C31 - MCIU/AEI/FEDER, UE) and by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades - Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI) (RED2018-102431-T). The authors would like to thank the Catalan Government for the quality accreditation given to their research group (2017 SGR 1537). GREiA is certified agent TECNIO in the category of technology developers from the Government of Catalonia. This work is partially supported by ICREA under the ICREA Academia programme. Elsevier https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2022.103986 http://hdl.handle.net/10459.1/83530 |
| spellingShingle | Mobile measurements of microclimatic variables through the central area of Singapore: An analysis from the pedestrian perspective Chàfer, Marta Microclimate Outdoor thermal comfort Urban heat island Greenery Transect Sky view factor |
| status_str | publishedVersion |
| title | Mobile measurements of microclimatic variables through the central area of Singapore: An analysis from the pedestrian perspective |
| title_full | Mobile measurements of microclimatic variables through the central area of Singapore: An analysis from the pedestrian perspective |
| title_fullStr | Mobile measurements of microclimatic variables through the central area of Singapore: An analysis from the pedestrian perspective |
| title_full_unstemmed | Mobile measurements of microclimatic variables through the central area of Singapore: An analysis from the pedestrian perspective |
| title_short | Mobile measurements of microclimatic variables through the central area of Singapore: An analysis from the pedestrian perspective |
| title_sort | Mobile measurements of microclimatic variables through the central area of Singapore: An analysis from the pedestrian perspective |
| topic | Microclimate Outdoor thermal comfort Urban heat island Greenery Transect Sky view factor |
| topic_facet | Microclimate Outdoor thermal comfort Urban heat island Greenery Transect Sky view factor |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2022.103986 http://hdl.handle.net/10459.1/83530 |