Heat stress in Hong Kong due to urbanization effect
http://www.weather.gov.hk/hkonews/news-p106e.htm
The Hong Kong Observatory joined hands with the Geography Department of
the University of Hong Kong (HKU) to study the heat stress in Hong Kong
due to urbanization effect. The Observatory's mobile survey vehicle, equipped
with Global Positioning System (GPS) and Wet Bulb Globe Temperature
(WBGT) heat stress measurement system, was deployed together with six
vehicles equipped with GPS, temperature and humidity measurement
instruments of the HKU to traverse the busy streets in Kowloon and Hong
Kong Island to gather temperature and heat stress data over different parts of
Hong Kong.
Recent studies carried out by the Observatory show that the rising trend of air
temperature in Hong Kong is influenced by both the global warming due to
greenhouse effect and the urban development in Hong Kong. As the latter
might depend significantly on the building density and land use, this study
aims to better understand the spatial variability of heat stress in Hong Kong
due to urbanization.
As part of the study, two vehicle traverses were conducted on the afternoon of
22 and 23 May 2008. More joint vehicle traverses would be conducted in
future to study the spatial variability at different times of the day and different
weather conditions.
The Observatory's mobile survey vehicle and the instrumented vehicle of the
University of Hong Kong (the taxi behind) traversing the central business
districts in Kowloon.
The region covered by the Observatory's survey vehicle to study heat stress
due to urbanization on the afternoon of 22 and 23 May 2008.