Urban heat island effect making temperatures 8F hotter in 65 US cities

[orthoclad]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/10/heat-us-cities-study

Almost 34 million people in 65 major US cities, or 15% of the country’s population, are experiencing temperatures that are 8F higher than their surrounding areas, according to a new analysis from Climate Central, a non-profit research group.

That is largely due to built environments like parking lots and asphalt sidewalks, and a lack of trees, that contribute to what’s known as the urban heat island effect.
...

Throughout the day, these hard surfaces retain solar radiation instead of expelling it. As a result, extreme heat becomes so much more concentrated in cities compared with rural surrounding areas.
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Some of the ways to reduce the impact of heat include planting trees and shrubs along streets and roadways. Converting asphalt-heavy infrastructure like parking lots into parks and green spaces can be essential in creating additional shade, while allowing the sun’s radiation to dissipate more quickly.

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One of the things the article points out is the environmental justice aspect of the heat island effect. "Red-lined" neighborhoods, largely poor black communities, might experience temperatures 12 deg F higher than surrounding areas. White working class communities of brick rowhouses with few trees suffer similarly. Suffering from the urban heat island is both racial and class injustice.

The article cites parking lots as major contributors to the heat island effect. It suggests vegetation as a cure. Trees and shrubs help by shading the ground and by the evapotranspiration effect, where water brought up by the roots evaporates off the leaves and absorbs a LOT of heat (evapotranspiration can cool the area by 10 deg F). I have another solution: let's cover parking lots with raised solar panels and use them to power homes and car chargers. We have millions of acres of land in the US covered with asphalt just to give us convenient places to store our masters the cars. Lets shade those acres and make use of the megaWatts of sunlight falling on them. That land is already destroyed - lets give it a higher use.


edit to add link to original study:
https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-matters/urban-heat-islands-2024