It's Hot in the City: Understanding the Urban Heat Island Effect on Ohio State's Campus

Wednesday, September 02nd, 2020
Forty years ago, Ohio State geography Professor John Arnfield would get into his Volkswagen Microbus and set out to study the microclimates in Columbus. His wife, Joan, marked intersections in the city as sensors mounted on top of the vehicle and a strip chart recorder kept track of the decreasing temperature from the urban settings of campus and downtown toward Scioto Downs, a horseracing track in a rural area south of the city. The temperature was lower in the rural areas because of the urban heat island effect, which results from factors including activity in the city; buildings, roads, and their materials; and lack of green infrastructure. Now, Jim DeGrand, a senior researcher in geography and assistant state climatologist, and colleagues from Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center; university planning, architecture, and real estate; and the Sustainability Institute at Ohio State are determining what the urban heat island effect means for Ohio State. By classifying climate zones at the Columbus campus and installing a sensor network to monitor and measure the heat island effect, the team expects to explore ways to reduce its impact.  Follow this link to read more. Sourced from: The Ohio State University