A Remote Sensing Analysis of Parcel Design and Urban Heat Island Formation

This paper presents findings from a study on residential development patterns and urban heat island formation in the Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan region. Due to the influence of ambient temperatures on photochemical smog formation, energy consumption for cooling, and human heat stress, the urban heat island effect holds implications for climate changes on a regional and global scale. Although the phenomenon of heat island formation is well documented, an analysis of the relationship between small-scale measures of urban design and surface heat production has only recently been made possible through advances in remote sensing data collection. It is the intent of this research to identify potential relationships between design characteristics of urban land use and surface thermal emissions at the level of the residential parcel. The research design combines high resolution (10 m) thermal data obtained by the National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA) through the Project ATLANTA study with parcel attribute information derived from tax records for approximately 116,000 single-family residential parcels in the Atlanta, Georgia region. Specifically, the analysis seeks to quantify the influence of impervious surfaces, lawns and landscaping, tree canopy cover, parcel area (density), and neighborhood street network patterns on the release of thermal energy per single-family dwelling. Through the use of GIS and remote sensing techniques, the land use and thermal imagery data are incorporated into a single mapping context for analysis. Thematic mapping and regression analysis techniques are utilized to identify significant relationships that may exist between patterns of land use and urban warming. Results of the analysis provide evidence that low density, conventional suburban forms of residential development are less thermally efficient than moderate to high density traditional neighborhood models when measured on a per parcel basis. The paper concludes with an overview of design-based approaches to mitigating the formation of heat islands.