B13I-0308:
Urban Heat Island Studies: Los Angeles Changing Climate
Monday, 15 December 2014
Tania Torres1, Freddy Hsu1, Pantiwa Jarujareet1, Steve LaDochy1, Pedro C Ramirez1 and William C Patzert2, (1)California State University Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States, (2)NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, United States
Abstract:
The Los Angeles urban heat island (UHI) is a complex changing entity. Major influences on the UHI include population, land use, Pacific Ocean variability, weather, and climate. Downtown average temperatures have increased over the last century with minimum values increasing faster than maximum values, similar to other UHI cities. However, the LA UHI is uniquely affected by California's diverse topography and microclimates. The city also lacks well defined rural areas that are characteristic of UHI. Our study looks at urban thermal patterns and the state of the UHI in recent years. Gradient temperature maps drawn every 6 hours for the summer and winter, 2012-13, reveal large variations in the locations of most intense UHIs. Warming trends are compared with population increases using census data and land use changes with the usage of Landsat Data.
