Mapping summer SUHI and its impact on the environment using GIS and Remote Sensing techniques: A case study on Municipality of Prishtina (Kosovo)

Abstract

Urban areas, compared to peripheral and rural areas, have higher temperatures which are caused by a series of unplanned activities that are undertaken by humans. Such a thing leads to the emergence of the Surface Urban Heat Island (SUHI) phenomenon. In this paper, summer SUHI is determined through the calculation of LST for the Municipality of Prishtina using GIS and Remote Sensing techniques. To make this calculation, the Landsat 8 satellite image with 0% cloud cover was used. From the calculations made it turns out that the pixels with the highest value of LST are found in those parts where the urban area appears, where there are numerous constructions with impermeable materials, as well as in those areas where there are bare surfaces. Whereas, the pixels with lower values of LST appear in those parts where there are vegetation and water bodies, making these areas fresher. The SUHI phenomenon makes the lives of citizens difficult, therefore, such information is very important for the leaders and urban planners of the city of Prishtina, so that they take a series of steps towards minimizing such an effect in order to the life of the citizens to be as healthy as possible.

Comparative assessment of the accuracies of daytime land surface temperature retrieval methods using Landsat 8 and MODIS imageries in Benin, West Africa

“…Indeed, LSTs had been retrieved from the thermal bands of the Landsat ETM+ using remote sensing, geographic information system (GIS) techniques, and an MW algorithm. Berila and Isufi 17 determined the summer SUHI through the calculation of LST from Landsat 8 satellite image for the Municipality of Prishtina using GIS and remote sensing techniques. Zormpas et al 18 evaluated Landsat 8 in retrieving the dead fuel moisture content associated with a correlation study with LST in a complex Mediterranean ecosystem.…”

Assessment of the dynamics of urban surface temperatures and air pollution related to COVID-19 in a densely populated City environment in East Java

“…Land Surface Temperature (LST) is one of the important environmental variables for surface SUHI studies in urban areas. Land cover material with high heat energy absorption ability causes the temperature to increase because of low albedo ( Berila and Isufi, 2021 ). Anthropogenic activities such as transportation, industrial, heating, and air conditioning emissions can affect surface UHI ( Shi et al, 2019 ; Wang et al, 2018 ).…”

Determining the influence of population density on the land surface temperature based on remote sensing data and GIS techniques: application to Prizren, Kosovo

“…The UHI phenomenon has three types -depending on how the temperature is measured (Fabrizi, Bonafoni & Biondi, 2010;Sherafati, Saradjian & Rabbani, 2018;Berila & Isufi, 2021b;Isufi, Berila & Bulliqi, 2021): a) Canopy layer heat island (CLHI) -this layer lies approximately at the average height of buildings and is determined by measuring the air temperature at a height of 2 m above the ground. The CLHI has usually been measured using sensors mounted on fixed meteorological stations (Nichol, Fung, Lam & Wong, 2009;Clay et al, 2016;Berila & Isufi, 2021b;Isufi et al, 2021). b) Boundary layer heat island (BLHI) -lies above the CLHI layer and can reach a thickness of up to 1 km.…”

“…b) Boundary layer heat island (BLHI) -lies above the CLHI layer and can reach a thickness of up to 1 km. It is measured using special platforms, such as radiosondes and aircraft (Berila & Isufi, 2021b;Isufi et al, 2021). c) Surface urban heat island (SUHI) -difference in radiant temperature between urban and non-urban surfaces.…”

“…c) Surface urban heat island (SUHI) -difference in radiant temperature between urban and non-urban surfaces. The measurement/determination of this layer is done using thermal remote sensors (Berila & Isufi, 2021b;Isufi et al, 2021). Science has made significant progress in how the UHI phenomenon can be measured.…”