Evaluating the Impact of the Morphological Transformation of Urban Sites on the Urban Thermal Microenvironment

Tropical cities currently face issues of climate change resulting from rapid urbanization and the impact of urban morphological transformations on the microclimate. The analysis of urban physical forms and patterns is a realisticmethodfor quantifying these impacts. This work examined the impact of morphological transformations of an urban site in Wuhan, China, on the microthermal environment at different time periods. We also quantified and compared the impact of four urban site morphologies on ambient air temperature. The morphological changes of the study site were inferred from Google Earth images acquired at different time points in 2006 and 2013. ENVI-met simulation software was used to compare the changes in temperature at the selected site by specific date. The year- and time-based analysis of existing urban morphologies and their impact on the microurban thermal environment shows that the overall minimum and maximum values of morning and afternoon ambient air temperature are nearly the same for the 2013 and 2006 morphologies. The maximum temperature difference was observed in the afternoon (14:00), with an average difference of approximately 2 °C in the east. The findings of this research could provide a useful guide for optimizing the transformation of urban site planning and design and a suitable method for assessing the impact of built-up areas on the environment.

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