With record temperatures expected in many regions of the United States this summer, Central Arizona-Phoenix’s (CAP) Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) work on the phenomenon of “urban heat islands” becomes even more important. Heat islands are urban areas of significantly warmer temperatures than surrounding rural areas—mostly because humans have replaced soil and vegetation with materials such as asphalt and concrete that absorb heat during the day and re-radiate it at night, causing higher temperatures.
The latest issue of the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Discovery Series Articles examines the phenomenon, drawing on a recent paper in the journal Urban Ecosystems by CAP scientists Sharon Harlan and co-authors Juan Declet-Barreto, Anthony Brazel, Chris Martin and Winston Chow, all based at Arizona State University in Phoenix.