Characterization of the spatiotemporal urban heat island for Kampala City
Abstract
Urban heat islands (UHIs) are a growing concern in cities worldwide, posing significant environmental and health challenges. These densely built areas experience elevated temperatures compared to surrounding rural areas due to the combined effect of various factors, including such as abundance of impervious surfaces, like Asphalt, concrete, and other materials absorb and retain heat more efficiently than vegetation, limited green spaces, and anthropogenic heat sources further contributing to the urban heat island phenomenon. In Kampala specifically, UHIs have contributed to increased energy consumption in terms of increase in air conditioning demand, deterioration of air quality since high temperatures trap pollutants, and most evidently heat-related illnesses such as heat stress and heatstroke. This project aims to comprehensively characterize the UHI phenomenon in Kampala city by identifying the key factors contributing to UHIs, mapping the spatial extent and intensity of UHIs, analyzing the spatiotemporal dynamics of UHIs enabling us to investigate how UHI patterns vary across different seasons, times of day, and weather conditions. As a result, we shall be able to develop a predictive model to predict UHI occurrence and intensity under different scenarios. By providing evidence-based trends in the variations of UHIs in Kampala city, it will facilitate making of recommendations to various stakeholders for appropriate intervention in offsetting the effects of UHIs.