UAS-Based Thermal Photogrammetry for Microscale Surface Urban Heat Island Intensity Assessment in Support of Sustainable Urban Development (A Case Study of Lyulin Housing Complex, Sofia City, Bulgaria)

Stelian Dimitrov (), Martin Iliev, Bilyana Borisova, Lidiya Semerdzhieva and Stefan Petrov
Additional contact information
Stelian Dimitrov: Department of Geospatial Systems and Technologies, Faculty of Geology and Geography, Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski, 15 Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd., 1504 Sofia, Bulgaria
Martin Iliev: Department of Geospatial Systems and Technologies, Faculty of Geology and Geography, Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski, 15 Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd., 1504 Sofia, Bulgaria
Bilyana Borisova: Department of Landscape Ecology and Environmental Protection, Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski, 15 Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd., 1504 Sofia, Bulgaria
Lidiya Semerdzhieva: Department of Geospatial Systems and Technologies, Faculty of Geology and Geography, Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski, 15 Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd., 1504 Sofia, Bulgaria
Stefan Petrov: Department of Geospatial Systems and Technologies, Faculty of Geology and Geography, Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski, 15 Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd., 1504 Sofia, Bulgaria

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 5, 1-18

Abstract: The urban heat island (UHI) and its intensity is one of the phenomena that are of determining importance for the comfort of living in cities and their sustainable development in the face of deepening climate change. The study is objectively difficult due to the large dynamics like land cover and the considerable diversity of land use patterns in urban areas. Most of the frequently used research practice approaches provide information with problematic spatial and temporal resolution, making them difficult to apply for sustainable urban planning purposes. This paper proposes to calculate SUHI intensity as the difference between the temperature of a given point within a city and the average minimum temperature of the land cover class with the lowest surface temperatures within the same urban area. The study presents the results of the application of thermal photogrammetry based on the use of unmanned aerial systems (UAS), combined with geographic information systems (GIS), in the study of surface urban heat island intensity (SUHI), at the local level for the largest housing complex in Bulgaria–Lyulin district of the capital of Sofia city. The studies were carried out during a heat wave in July 2023. A difference of 16.5 °C was found between locations with SUHI occurrence and of the peripheral non-build and natural land cover types within the urbanized area. The information benefits of locally addressed data and their direct applicability are discussed to support decision-making processes in the planning and management of urban areas, including their climate adaptation and sustainable development.

Keywords: urban heat island (UHI); surface urban heat island (SUHI); thermal photogrammetry; unmanned aerial systems (UAS); sustainable urban planning; block/neighborhood level (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/5/1766/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/5/1766/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:5:p:1766-:d:1342992

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().