Extended Abstract (148K)16A.4
Examples of climate and tourism research for tourism demands
Andreas Matzarakis, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
Climate information and knowledge about the influence of the atmospheric environment on humans are important themes in tourism climatology. The atmospheric environment affects humans and can in some cases lead to physiological strain with resulting impacts on health, as for example, those caused by summer heat waves. However, to be useful information on these should be standardised and include the full inventory of factors that might affect human health and well being, at a spatial resolution that is sufficiently detailed to be useful. These factors should include intensity of UV-radiation, air quality, noise pollution and thermal bioclimatic conditions. The information must also be presented in a way that can be easily understood, not only by people in other disciplines but also by members of the public. The first part of this paper explores a method of the assessment of the thermal component using thermal index. For the calculation of thermal indices based on the human energy balance, meteorological (air temperature, wind speed, air humidity and short and long wave radiation fluxes) and thermo physiological (activity and clothing) data are needed. The RayMan model, which has been developed for urban climate studies and can be applied also for different analyses in applied climatology, is presented here. The presented model is a helpful tool for the assessment of tourism and climate related questions. Sample analyses for different parts of the world are presented and discussed by the use of synoptical and climatological data. The second part of this papers presents information on climate and tourism for Greece. Tourism-related atmospheric/climate information and results for single stations as well as generated maps for Greece have been presented. The information and methods has been documented and is now available and downloadable in internet for general use.
Session 16A, Tourism
Friday, 1 November 2002, 3:00 PM-5:00 PM
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