Quantification of the Influences of Wind and Cloud on the Nocturnal Urban Heat Island of a Large City

Analyses taken over all observed weather conditions of daily 0600 EST climate data from a network of monitoring stations in and around the large city of Melbourne, Australia, revealed a 20-yr mean urban heat island (UHI) value of 1.13°C. The UHI varied seasonally between summer (1.29°C), spring (1.25°C), autumn (1.02°C), and winter (0.98°C). Investigations undertaken with daily wind speed and cloud amount data enabled a detailed investigation of the relative importance of factors such as the turbulent and radiative exchanges on Melbourne’s UHI. Analysis of variance and regression techniques were used to explore these processes and to predict the behavior of the UHI in numerical terms for mean seasonal and annual periods between 1972 and 1991. Over the 20-yr period, analyses of the association among Melbourne’s UHI, wind, and cloud revealed that the UHI was inversely proportional to approximately the fourth root of both the wind speed and the cloud amount. This relationship explained more of the UHI variance during summer and the least variance during winter. Increases in the amount of cloud cover and in the frequency of wind speeds in excess of 2.0 m s−1 resulted in a statistically significant (95% confidence level) reduction in UHI magnitude. The influence of wind in limiting Melbourne’s UHI magnitude was greatest during clear to near-clear sky conditions. Similarly increases in cloud were most restrictive to UHI development during calm to low wind speeds. Unlike most previous studies, the linear regression analysis presented here revealed that cloud was more limiting than the wind speed to UHI development for all seasons except summer. Contour plots of the UHI are presented for the various associations between each category of cloud and wind. These plots enable a clear visual presentation of the most to least favorable conditions for UHI intensity and development. The analyses indicate that low wind speeds and little or no cloud were typically associated with the largest UHI development. Eight octas of cloud and wind speeds in excess of 5.0 m s−1 were usually associated with modest (but still apparent) UHI development.