Geographica Pannonica Vol.24-1
July 23, 2026Geographica Pannonica Vol.23-3
July 23, 2026Geographica Pannonica - Volume 23, Issue 4
Volume 23, Issue 4 content (click on a plus button for more):
HEAT-RELATED MORTALITY AS AN INDICATOR OF POPULATION VULNERABILITY IN A MID-SIZED CENTRAL EUROPEAN CITY (NOVI SAD, SERBIA, SUMMER 2015)
Authors: Daniela Arsenović, Stevan Savić, Zorana Lužanin, Ivana Radić, Dragan Milošević, Miodrag Arsić
Abstract: Hot summers with several intensive heat waves lead to strong heat-related mortality in Central and Southeast European cities. Therefore, the aim of the study was to evaluate association between maximum temaprature and mortality during the summer period in 2015 and to contribute to the future long-term assessment of heat-related mortality in urban population. The daily number of deaths of all causes and cause-specific mortality for the population of Novi Sad were used, as well as hourly air temperature data from the Novi Sad urban network (NSUNET) system. Four heat waves were detected using the Huth and Kysely methods. Three heat wave periods lasted longer than ten days. In July and August, 45% of days had a maximum temperature above 30 ºC, and more than 70% of days had a maximum temperature above 25 ºC. The average number of deaths was higher during the heat wave days. Significant association was found between Tmax and all-cause, cardiorespiratory, non-cardiorespiratory in total population, all-cause and cardiorespiratory mortality in the age group 65 and over. This study demonstrates a high magnitude of relation between mortality and temperature. Finally, the results show that population in urban areas is highly vulnerable during heat waves.
Keywords: Mortality; heat waves; high temperature; urban population; Serbia
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-22680
Article info:
Received: July 30, 2019 | Revised: December 16, 2019 | Accepted: December 19, 2019
PLUVIAL FLOODING IN URBAN AREAS ACROSS THE EUROPEAN CONTINENT
Authors: Marija Prokić, Stevan Savić, Dragoslav Pavić
Abstract: Pluvial flooding is a result of overland flow and ponding before the runoff enters any watercourse, drainage system or sewer, or cannot enter it because the network is full to capacity, usually caused by intense rainfall. River and coastal floods get the most attention since they are largest and last the longest, while pluvial floods are relatively marginalized in research. Therefore, the main goal of this research was to show risk posed by pluvial floods, their connection to current global climate change processes, present effects of flooding in European cities, as well as what we can expect in the future. Furthermore, the aims were to present and get more familiar with scientific projects, strategies, directives and measures devised both on national and international levels, that deal with urban pluvial flood issues across the European continent. Climate change projections indicate that there will be an increase in the frequency and intensity of rainfall events throughout Europe and along with ongoing urbanization, the problem of pluvial flooding will most certainly require more attention, which it is starting to receive. Some countries have already developed their strategies and initiatives and implemented both structural and non-structural measures, such as spatial planning, constructional measures, information systems, reducing land sealing through policies, building codes and standards, on-site improvement of retention, infiltration, evaporation, and rainfall water recycling with the use of green roofs, permeable or porous pavements, rain gardening or urban rainwater harvesting. At the same time, there are numerous research papers, studies, conferences and workshops devoted to the problem of pluvial flooding and its management carried out in an attempt to properly deal with this hazard.
Keywords: urban areas; pluvial flooding; climate change; precipitation; scientific projects; water management; Europe
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-23508
Article info:
Received: October 07, 2019 | Revised: December 23, 2019 | Accepted: December 24, 2019
PRECIPITATION, HUMIDITY AND CLOUDINESS IN PODGORICA (MONTENEGRO) DURING THE PERIOD 1951-2018
Authors: Dragan Burić, Miroslav Doderović
Abstract: This paper presents the results of a trend analysis of three climate elements: precipitation, cloudiness and humidity. Almost the entire period of instrumental measurements (precipitation and humidity) and visual observations (cloudiness) are covered. In the observed 68-year period (1951-2018), the trend of annual and seasonal precipitation amounts is insignificant. Though, there is a significant decrease in the number of days with precipitation ≥ 1 mm, which implies a movement towards more arid conditions. On the other hand, the number of days with extreme rainfall ≥ 40 and 50 mm is increasing. In Podgorica, the annual statistics of days with snow cover decreases as well. There is also a decrease in the relative humidity and cloudiness, and with both elements the trend is insignificant only in the autumn season. The results of the trend calculation show that the number of gloomy days is more intensively reduced than the number of increasing bright days. In general, the results of the research show that the climate of Podgorica tends to be more arid with more extreme weather events. The climate variations happening in this city are, to small amount, caused by the urbanization process. Podgorica has the character of an urban heat island in a cooler environment, with an average annual intensity of about 0.7°C and the highest in winter (about 0.8°C). The most symptomatic indicator of urbanization is temperature, but anthropogenic heat production in the city (asphalt, constructions, increase of aerosols, etc.) also affects other climate elements. Compared to the non-urban environment, Podgorica has a higher annual rainfall of 100 mm and a lower humidity of 3%, while this difference is not noticeable in the overall cloudiness.
Keywords: precipitation; humidity; cloudiness; trend; Podgorica; Montenegro
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-23582
Article info:
Received: October 14, 2019 | Revised: December 23, 2019 | Accepted: December 24, 2019
NEW CLOTHING RESISTANCE SCHEME FOR ESTIMATING OUTDOOR ENVIRONMENTAL THERMAL LOAD
Authors: Ferenc ÁcsA, Erzsébet Kristóf, Annamária Zsákai
Abstract: A new clothing resistance model for estimating outdoor thermal load is proposed and its behavior is analyzed in different weather conditions. It is based on clothed human body energy balance considerations; the human treated is a walking human in outdoor conditions. Weather and human data are taken from the internet site of the Hungarian Meteorological Service and from a Hungarian human dataset, respectively. Environmental thermal load is characterized in terms of clothing resistance rcl and operative temperature. The model’s main strength is that it simulates metabolic rate M as simply as possible. rcl deviations caused by personal variations of M are the largest in extreme cold and warm conditions, in the comfort zone this effect is non-essential. rcl deviations caused by wind speed variations can be especially large in large heat excess cases. Further model tests are needed for more extreme conditions.
Keywords: weather; Hungarian human; environmental thermal load; clothing resistance; operative
temperature; metabolic activity; wind speed
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-23717
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Received: October 23, 2019 | Revised: December 25, 2019 | Accepted: December 26, 2019
IMPROVING SCHOOLYARD WIND ENVIRONMENTS: CASE STUDIES IN TWO SCHOOLS IN NANJING
Authors: Anqi Liu, Qiuxia Xu, Jiahao Gao, Zhen Xu, Lingyun Han
Abstract: Wind environment as an essential aspect of urban micro-climate is usually studied as an important factor affecting human wind comfort and thermal comfort in public open space. Less studied is how wind environments influence schoolyard serving for children and teenagers who are more sensitive to air temperature and air pollution. This paper presents a study using XFlow for wind speed evaluation based on CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) simulation, and Ecotect Analysis for thermal comfort evaluation. Choosing Nanjing Mochou Lake Primary School and Nanjing NO.13 Middle School Suojin Campus as case studies, it offers an evaluation of wind environments in these two schoolyards and surrounding open spaces. Simulation shows that improvements should be made to build better wind environments around both schools. Scenarios are developed subsequently by adjusting buildings in study areas at the scale of blocks and school buildings, proving the efficiency of improvements for a more comfortable wind environments. This study focuses on schoolyard wind environments from the standpoint of children and teenagers, suggesting that research on urban micro-climate can be expanded in multiple directions so that as many social groups in different ages as possible benefits, i.e. have healthier urban life.
Keywords: schoolyard wind environment; CFD simulation; public open space; urban micro-climate
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-24183
Article info:
Received: November 26, 2019 | Revised: December 24, 2019 | Accepted: December 26, 2019
CLIMATE SENSITIVITY TO LAND USE CHANGES OVER THE CITY OF BRUSSELS
Authors: Gwenn Cugnon, Steven Caluwaerts, François Duchêne, Rafiq Hamdi, Piet Termonia, Sara Top, Thomas Vergauwen, Bert Van Schaeybroeck
Abstract: Prompted with the ongoing and projected climate change, a wide range of cities have committed, not only to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions but also to implement different climate change adaptation measures. These measures serve to ensure the wellbeing of the urban population. In practice, however, the planning of realistic adaptation measures is a complex process. Prior to starting such endeavor, it may therefore be useful to explore the maximum potential benefit that can be gained through adaptation measures. In this work, simple, extreme yet realistic adaptation measures are proposed in terms of changes in albedo and vegetation fraction. The impact of these land-use scenarios is explored by use of the land surface model SURFEX on the summer climate in terms of heat waves and the urban heat island for the city of Brussels. This is done for different periods in the future using the greenhouse gas scenario RCP8.5.
Keywords: climate change; adaptation; land use; urban climatology; scenarios
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-24214
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Received: November 27, 2019 | Revised: December 25, 2019 | Accepted: December 26, 2019
ANALYSIS OF THE URBAN HEAT ISLAND INTENSITY BASED ON AIR TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENTS IN A RENOVATED PART OF BUDAPEST (HUNGARY)
Authors: Csenge Dian, Rita Pongrácz, Dóra Incze, Judit Bartholy, Attila Talamon
Abstract: The ratio of buildings, streets, and other artificially covered areas are increasing in cities. Ferencváros is an inner district of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary. For the local government of the district it is an important goal in the framework of the urban development planning to increase the proportion of vegetation since green areas have a mitigating effect for the urban heat island (UHI) intensity. We carried out an in situ measurement program for air temperature and relative humidity with 24 measuring points in Ferencváros, and also completed a green area survey in the renovated part of the district. The main aim of this paper is to analyse the daily cycle and the spatial structure of the UHI intensity based on air temperature.
Keywords: spatial structure of UHI; daily cycle of UHI intensity; in situ measurements; green area; summer; autumn
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-23839
Article info:
Received: October 31, 2019 | Revised: December 28, 2019 | Accepted: December 28, 2019
TOWARDS THE DETERMINATION OF DRIVING FACTORS OF VARYING LST-LCZ RELATIONSHIPS – A CASE STUDY OVER 25 CITIES
Authors: Mehdi Gholami Rostam, Christoph Beck
Abstract: The current study aimed to prove the existence of a significant relation between land surface temperature (LST) and local climate zones (LCZs) and its possibility to be generalized to all cities around the world with different climatic zones and characteristics. The further step in this regard was to find the effective climatic and geographical variables affecting this potential relation. For that, 25 cities all around the world with various climatic conditions were selected based on the availability of appropriate satellite images and level zero data on the World Urban Database and Portal Tool (WUDAPT). After acquiring both LST and LCZ maps the comparison between them was made with the Wilcoxon rank sum test indicating the existence of any meaningful pattern. Then, 8 climatic and geographical variables and all possible combinations thereof were assessed to determine the effective drivers on the LST-LCZ relationship. The results showed that the combination of the latitude, mean and maximum annual temperature affected this connection more than any other considered variables.
Keywords: Land Surface Temperature (LST); Local Climate Zones (LCZs); Wilcoxon rank sum test; Hierarchical cluster analysis
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-24238
Article info:
Received: November 29, 2019 | Revised: December 28, 2019 | Accepted: December 28, 2019
ANALYSIS OF URBAN PUBLIC SPACES’ WIND ENVIRONMENT BY APPLYING THE CFD SIMULATION METHOD: A CASE STUDY IN NANJING
Authors: Xiaoyue Wang, Fang Liu, Zhen Xu
Abstract: The increase in the density of high-rise buildings is making urban air flow increasingly complex, and the wind environment conditions in urban public spaces are considerably changing. At present, few studies focus on the relationship between wind environment and the master plan of urban public spaces or attempt to improve the wind environment of public spaces from a landscape design perspective. To resolve this gap in information, this study explored the relationship among wind speed, seasonal comfort level in Nanjing, and different types of planting patterns. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software was used to quantify the seasonal wind environment of Xuanwumen Square in Nanjing. Three planting designs were created on the basis of the results, and their CFD results were compared among one another. Comparison results show that the second planting design provides the best wind environment, and its comfort levels are 2.26, 1.92, and 2.09 out of 5 in winter, summer, and total. Understanding of the relationship among different landscape designs and their impacts on wind environment supports designers in improving the wind environment of Xuanwumen Square in Nanjing. This study provides new insights into relating urban public space design with the quantitative research of wind environment in the future.
Keywords: CFD simulation; wind environment; urban public space; landscape quantitative analysis
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-24249
Article info:
Received: November 30, 2019 | Revised: December 28, 2019 | Accepted: December 29, 2019
INVESTIGATING LOCAL CLIMATE ZONES FOR OUTDOOR THERMAL COMFORT ASSESSMENT IN AN INDIAN CITY
Authors: Rajashree KotharkarA*, Anurag BagadeA, Abhay AgrawalA
Abstract: The rapid growth of development and urbanization in the Indian subcontinents has made the urban areas vulnerable to outdoor thermal discomfort (OTC) which is in turn affecting the quality of living in these areas. This study aims at evaluating spatiotemporal dynamics of outdoor thermal comfort in Nagpur city (India) during winter, summer and heat wave period using Local Climate Zone (LCZ) classification. It uses Thom’s Discomfort Index (DI) and Relative Strain Index (RSI) to analyze outdoor thermal comfort. It also examines the significance of major LCZs in addressing thermal anomaly and OTC at different time periods using One-way ANOVA technique. It identifies critical LCZ having a maximum exposure of discomfort and concludes with the applicability of LCZ for addressing discomfort.
Keywords: Heat Island; Heatwave; Local Climate Zone; Relative Strain Index; Discomfort Index
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-24251
Article info:
Received: November 30, 2019 | Revised: December 26, 2019 | Accepted: December 26, 2019
OPTIMIZING TREES DISTANCES IN URBAN STREETS FOR INSOLATION MITIGATION
Authors: Ivana Bajsanski, Vesna Stojakovic, Dragan Milosevic
Abstract: Mitigation of overheating in streets is an important task for urban planners and architects. Urban surfaces in streets, such as footways and façades, can contribute to increase overheating in cities, whereas the trees can help to decrease insolation. In this paper we created an algorithm to determine optimal distance between the trees in a street in order to mitigate façade and footway insolation. A parametric study for different street orientations and building geometries was therefore conducted for the hottest wave of the year for the corresponding location. The results show that different trees disposition can mitigate overheating of horizontal and vertical surfaces up to 7%. The algorithmic and parametric approach used in this paper can contribute to more precise urban design guidelines for comfortable streets.
Keywords: street; algorithm; insolation; façade; footways; trees
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-24242
Article info:
Received: November 29, 2019 | Revised: December 26, 2019 | Accepted: December 30, 2019
ANALYSIS OF SURFACE TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENTS OVER COMPLEX URBAN SITES
Authors: Zsuzsanna Dezső, Rita Pongrácz, Judit Bartholy
Abstract: The aim of this study is to analyse the thermal properties of natural and artificial urban surfaces and the impact of surface colours and shading. Measuring campaigns were conducted in spring and summer (2018–2019) in the district XI of Budapest to determine the surface temperature of various urban materials. The results show that the coolest surfaces are natural covers (water, vegetation), while the hottest surfaces are concrete pavements, asphalt and rubber paving when exposed to direct solar radiation. Moreover, among concrete pavements, light coloured surfaces warm up 5-6 °C less on average compared to dark coloured surfaces. The use of rubber paving may be disadvantageous from the urban climatological point of view, as these surfaces become extremely hot under sunny conditions.
Keywords: surface temperature measurements; concrete pavements; rubber paving; outdoor thermal comfort; Budapest
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-23844
Article info:
Received: October 31, 2019 | Revised: December 29, 2019 | Accepted: December 30, 2019
THE IMPORTANCE OF MEASURING ULTRAFINE PARTICLES IN URBAN AIR QUALITY MONITORING IN SMALL CITIES
Authors: Ivan Notardonato, Maurizio Manigrasso, Luigi Pierno, Gaetano Settimo, Carmela Protano, Matteo Vitali, Vincenzo Mattei, Stefano Martellucci, Cristina Di Fiore, Paolo Boccia, Pasquale Avino
Abstract: The air quality monitoring is based on the determination of some gaseous pollutants and PM10 and PM2.5. Recent studies have reported the importance of the determination aerosol fraction below 1 μm both for the dynamic of the airborne and for the public health issue. This paper would like to investigate the importance of this fraction in the air quality monitoring. Further, a particular focus will be devoted the role of the Ultrafine Particles, i.e. particles below 100 nm, in the aerosol formation and in the human exposure. Two case studies will be presented and discussed on how the submicron particles can be determined and interpreted their role. In the first case, the measurements will be performed in downtown Rieti, city located in central Italy, 100 km North from Rome, with the scope to draw the behavior in relationship to the emission flexes. In the second scenario, the personal exposure of pedestrians will be investigated in Venafro, a small city located 150 km South-East Rome, by means of measuring PMx, total submicron fraction, different aerosol dimensional sizes in the range 5-360 nm along with the total Volatile Compounds. The different sources and contributions affecting the aerosol levels in the two areas will be investigated and extensively discussed as well as the role of the such particles in the aerosols science.
Keywords: Aerosol; Particulate Matter; Ultrafine particles; Level; Dynamic; Instrumentation; Source; Urban; Air Quality; Monitoring; Exposure; Health effects
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-24447
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Received: December 15, 2019 | Revised: December 28, 2019 | Accepted: December 28, 2019
OUTDOOR THERMAL COMFORT RESEARCH IN URBAN AREAS OF CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST EUROPE: A REVIEW
Authors: Jelena Dunjić
Abstract: Constant urban population growth and intensive urbanization lead to increased pressure on urban areas leading to uncomfortable living conditions. The quality of urban living conditions often depends on the thermal comfort of the open urban spaces, which are used on the daily basis. That is the reason why the attention towards outdoor thermal comfort (OTC) is increasing in the last decade among the researchers from different fields of expertise. In this article, the review of the outdoor thermal comfort research in urban areas of 11 countries of Central and Southeast Europe in the last decade (2010-2019). The main aim of the review is to give a comprehensive, systematic and complete insight in the current situation in the OTC research interest. The results of the review show increased but uneven interest in outdoor thermal comfort by the end of the research period in countries of the Central and Southeast Europe. In total, 120 articles on the topic of outdoor thermal comfort were identified in the research area. The most significant contribution to the urban outdoor thermal comfort research comes from Hungary, Serbia and Greece. Furthermore, five research objectives were identified: methodology improvement and development, climate sensitive and comfortable urban design and planning, citizens/pedestrian comfort and health assessment and improvement, tourism and health sector support and literature review
Keywords: outdoor thermal comfort; urban areas; urban microclimate; urban design; review
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-24458
Article info:
Received: December 16, 2019 | Revised: December 29, 2019 | Accepted: December 30, 2019
THERMAL PERFORMANCE OF THE URBAN WEATHER GENERATOR MODEL AS A TOOL FOR PLANNING SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT
Authors: Noelia Liliana Alchapar, Cláudia Cotrim Pezzuto, Erica Norma Correa, Agnese Salvati
Abstract: The research aims at assessing the sensitivity of the Urban Weather Generator v4.1 to the application of different mitigation strategies for the urban heat island under two climatic contexts: desert climate (Mendoza city) and tropical climate (Campinas city). Twenty-four scenarios that modify their morphologic and material parameters were simulated. The results showed that the temperature of the air predicted by the UWG model is not significantly sensitive to the changes produced by the application of different strategies in urban contexts of equal H/W aspect; however, it does show sensitivity to the variation of the H/W aspect (ΔTa ≤ 1.3°C) and the climate context. The highest performance of the UWG model was recorded on the surface temperatures of the urban envelope, with a maximum difference in surface temperature was recorded on high aspect ratio with high albedo in arid climate, (Ts of roof = 28°C).
Keywords: Thermal performance; strategies; H/W; high albedo; Urban Weather; city
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-24254
Article info:
Received: November 30, 2019 | Revised: December 28, 2019 | Accepted: December 30, 2019
SPATIO-TEMPORAL CLIMATE AND AGROCLIMATE DIVERSITIES OVER THE ZAGREB CITY AREA
Authors: Darija Bilandžija
Abstract: The Zagreb city is rich in green urban infrastructure that has an important role in climate change mitigation and adaptation. Knowledge on climate change and agroclimate has an important role in planning of green areas. Therefore, the aim is to evaluate the temporal and spatial diversities of agroclimate indicators over Zagreb city. Warming and no change in mean annual precipitation, as well as prolonged vegetation periods and reduced evapotranspiration were observed at all locations in the recent 1991- 2018 compared to reference 1961-1990 period. The results indicate different intensity in climate change of observed indicators and existance of diffrences in indicators between city centre, suburb and hilly slopes thatshould be considered while planning green urban infracture.
Keywords: agroclimate indicators; climate change; precipitation; temperature; hydrothermal conditions; water balance; Zagreb
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-24253
Article info:
Received: November 30, 2019 | Revised: December 29, 2019 | Accepted: December 30, 2019
URBAN MORPHOLOGY ASPECTS ON MICROCLIMATE IN A HOT AND HUMID CLIMATE
Authors: Beta Paramita, Andreas Matzarakis
Abstract: Bandung, the capital of West Java province, Indonesia has experienced rapid urbanization, which has affected the urban environment, including its building density, land use, and the quality of urban living. This specific urban morphology has had a significant effect on the urban microclimate. This study was aimed at describing the urban microclimate of three different overcrowded settlements, i.e., Linggawastu (overcrowded settlement), Gerlong Girang (moderately crowded), and Pasir Impun (least crowded). The discussion will detail aspects of the masses and buildings, the distance between buildings, the height of buildings, and the availability of green open spaces to give the perspective of urban morphology toward the microclimate. Fixed weather logger in those three locations were collected over one month, meanwhile the mobile measurements to find the micro-meteorological values of air temperature (Ta), globe temperature (Tg), humidity (RH), and wind speed (v) to define the mean radiant temperature (Tmrt). The measurements provided evidence of the trend of heat trapped in densely populated settlements shown in the diurnal temperature range from Tamax and Tamin (ΔTa) as only 3.2 °C. Meanwhile in Pasirimpun, which is least populated, ΔTa = 9.5 °C. Linggawastu with building coverage ratio (BCR) > 96% gave the contribution of low Tg=28.3 °C, as there is less insolation penetration to the area. Thus, the PET for two densely populated areas, Linggawastu and Gerlong Girang, tends to be neutral to slightly cool. Nevertheless, this study points out the high humidity in the morning and afternoon, as well as the low air velocity, is a strong affecting factor.
Keywords: overcrowded settlement; microclimate; physiologically equivalent temperature; hot and humid climate
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-24260
Article info:
Received: November 30, 2019 | Revised: December 28, 2019 | Accepted: December 30, 2019
A REVIEW OF CLIMATIC AND VEGETATION SURVEYS IN URBAN ENVIRONMENT WITH LASER SCANNING: A LITERATURE-BASED ANALYSIS
Authors: Zsuzsanna Szabó, Aletta Schlosser, Zoltán Túri, Szilárd Szabó
Abstract: Laser scanning is a promising relatively new technology of land surveying and has different contributions to research areas and practical applications. We performed a review based on query terms in the Scopus database. We determined the number of papers where the laser scanning was the technique of the survey and refined the results with the aerial (ALS) and terrestrial (TLS) laser scanning methods, and the urban and vegetation searching terms. Results showed that geosciences had a 30-40% ratio within the scientific papers using LiDAR. TLS had larger relevance related to ALS considering the total number of research papers, urban application and vegetation analysis in urban environment. We analysed the current status of the technology and discussed the underlying possible causes.
Keywords: LiDAR; aerial survey; ALS; static survey; terrestrial survey; TLS; Scopus
DOI: 10.5937/gp23-24675
Article info:
Received: November 13, 2019 | Revised: December 26, 2019 | Accepted: 30 December 2019