Local Climate Zone mapping using GIS methods in Szeged

  • János Unger Department of Climatology and Landscape Ecology, University of Szeged, Hungary
  • Enikő Lelovics Department of Climatology and Landscape Ecology, University of Szeged, Hungary
  • Tamás Gál Department of Climatology and Landscape Ecology, University of Szeged, Hungary
Keywords: climate mapping, Local Climate Zones, surface parameters, lot area polygons, GIS, Szeged

Abstract

Owing to anthropogenic activity, local climate develops in the area of built-up zones. The characteristics of built-up zones can be quantified by different methods. One of the methods is the Local Climate Zones (LCZ) classification system which describes the physical conditions of a local-scale environment of a measuring site from the viewpoint of the generated local climate. It is applicable worldwide universally and relatively easily based on objective geometric, radiative and thermal properties of the surface. The objectives of this study are to develop GIS methods in order to calculate several parameters describing the LCZs for any part of the study area using different databases and to identify and delineate the LCZ types which occur in and around the city of Szeged (Hungary) using the developed methods. As a result, six built LCZ types were distinguished and mapped in the studied urban area: "compact mid-rise", "compact low-rise", "open mid-rise", "open low-rise", "large low-rise" and "sparsely built". The developed method can be used in any urban area if the necessary input databases are available.

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Published
2014-04-03
How to Cite
UngerJ., LelovicsE., & GálT. (2014). Local Climate Zone mapping using GIS methods in Szeged. Hungarian Geographical Bulletin, 63(1), 29-41. https://doi.org/10.15201/hungeobull.63.1.3
Section
Studies on renewable energies, GIS and climatology