Assessment of Urban Heat Islands: A Multi-Sensor Perspective for the Dallas-Ft. Worth, USA Region

Authors

Kevin P. Gallo, National Climatic Data CenterFollow
Timothy W. Owen, NOAA/NESDIS/National Climatic Data Center

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

1998

Comments

Published in Geocarto International, Vol. 13, No. 4, December 1998.

Abstract

Data acquired during the early to mid-1990s by several satellite-sensor systems were combined in an assessment of the urban heat-island effect for the Dallas-Fort Worth, TX region of the United States. Normalized difference vegetation index and radiant surface temperature were computed from NOAA-AVHRR data. Two measures of the anthropogenic light emitted by urban-related surface features were available from the DMSP-OLS. Landsat MSS data were used to provide estimates of the predominant land cover within the grid cells associated with the NOA-AVHRR and DMSP-OLS data. The multi-sensor analysis of the environment associated with seven climate observation stations in the Dallas-Ft. Worth region provided a methodology for characterization of the stations as "urban" or "rural." Three of the seven stations examined were identified through this analyis as "urban." The information provided by a single sensor, while valuable, was clearly enhanced by the use of the multiple sensors included in this study.