Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
5.2. Historical evolution of urban climate studies
5.2.1.
The beginning
The influence of cities on air quality has been perceived since ancient times.
Landsberg quotes Seneca's (ca. 3BC-65AD) remarking on the “heavy air of Rome”
and the pestilent vapor and soot coming out of chimneys [LAN 81, p.3]. According
to Yoshino [YOS 90/91] the Greeks and the Romans took into account the local
climate conditions in the selection of the best sites for urban areas. Much later,
London's frequent smog led to the prohibition by Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603) of
coal burning during Parliamentary sessions [LAN 81]. However, the influence of
cities on climate is seldom referred to before the industrial revolution. The first
quantification of cities effect on climate was made by the chemist Luke Howard in
1818 [LAN 81]. London was found to be 3ºC warmer than the rural outskirts at
night and 0.3ºC cooler during the day. In 1855 and 1868, the Frenchman E. Renou
pointed out the same night-time phenomena in Paris [LAN 81]. He was aware that
the differences were greater during clear, calm nights; that freezing nights were 40%
more frequent in the rural areas; and that wind speed was lower in town. He also
noted on the importance the correct location of instruments.
It should be reported that meteorological measurements began during the
Renaissance a few decades after Galileo, Torricelli, and other scientists invented
meteorological instruments, such as the thermometer and the barometer. Several
early series (from the 17
th
century onwards) can be found in Italy [CAM 02],
England [MAN 74], France [LEG 92; PFI 94], Germany [BRA 05] among others.
However, it was a long time before the Academies of Sciences first and the World
Meteorological Organization afterwards issued rules to standardize instruments and
measuring conditions.
5.2.2.
The 20
th
century
During the beginning of the 20
th
century monographic studies of urban climate in
some cities were carried out. The effect of urban areas on climatic parameters was
already known by the time the German priest Rudolf Kratzer wrote what we may
consider the first manual on urban climatology (first edition in 1937) [KRA 37], in
which he described several experiments that were being conducted by the scientific
community. The influence of cities on thunderstorms was already known to Horton
(1921, quoted by Shepherd) [SHE 05]. This research was continued by Atkinson
[ATK 74] in London, Detwiller [DET 74] in Paris and in several US cities within the
framework of Metromex (Metropolitan Meteorological Experiment) [CHA 74]
during the 1970s.
The development of urban climatology was slow until the last decades of the 20
th
century, but a “boom” in the production of scientific experiments and papers has
since taken place. This was partly due to fast development of technology (new
sensors, computing power) and of new methodologies, as well as to the broad use of
GIS. The last decades of the 20
th
century have also been very fertile in the
