Parameterization of urban sensible heat flux from remotely sensed surface temperature

Effects of surface structure

Journal Article (2019)
Author(s)

Jinxin Yang (Guangzhou University)

Massimo Menenti (Chinese Academy of Sciences, TU Delft - Optical and Laser Remote Sensing)

E. Scott Krayenhoff (University of Guelph)

Zhifeng Wu (Guangzhou University)

Qian Shi (Sun Yat-sen University)

Xiaoying Ouyang (Chinese Academy of Sciences)

Research Group
Optical and Laser Remote Sensing
Copyright
© 2019 Jinxin Yang, M. Menenti, E. Scott Krayenhoff, Zhifeng Wu, Qian Shi, Xiaoying Ouyang
DOI related publication
https://doi.org/10.3390/rs11111347
More Info
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Publication Year
2019
Language
English
Copyright
© 2019 Jinxin Yang, M. Menenti, E. Scott Krayenhoff, Zhifeng Wu, Qian Shi, Xiaoying Ouyang
Research Group
Optical and Laser Remote Sensing
Issue number
11
Volume number
11
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Abstract

Sensible heat exchange has important consequences for urban meteorology and related applications. Directional radiometric surface temperatures of urban canopies observed by remote sensing platforms have the potential to inform estimations of urban sensible heat flux. An imaging radiometer viewing the surface from nadir cannot capture the complete urban surface temperature, which is defined as the mean surface temperature over all urban facets in three dimensions, which includes building wall surface temperatures and requires an estimation of urban sensible heat flux. In this study, a numerical microclimate model, Temperatures of Urban Facets in 3-D (TUF-3D), was used to model sensible heat flux as well as radiometric and complete surface temperatures. Model data were applied to parameterize an effective resistance for the calculation of urban sensible heat flux from the radiometric (nadir view) surface temperature. The results showed that sensible heat flux was overestimated during daytime when the radiometric surface temperature was used without the effective resistance that accounts for the impact of wall surface temperature on heat flux. Parameterization of this additional resistance enabled reasonably accurate estimates of urban sensible heat flux from the radiometric surface temperature.