The “Parque da Luz” is located in the center of São Paulo’s city. This is the oldest public park for the city. The “Parque da Luz” have a wonderful Faune and Flora. And knowing that one of the causes of the UHI is the deforestation (the low level of trees), we made at class our Research Question: “To what extent is the “Parque da Luz” an influence on the urban heat island at the region?”.
My hypothesis is that the “Parque da Luz” have a little action to “retard” this effect, and comparing the area where “Parque da Luz” is located and the other areas outside of it (“Estação da Luz” and “Estação Júlio Prestes”), it will not be the same. Probably the other areas, that have less green, will have a higher temperature, but this difference will not be big.
Methods
To answer the Research Question we went to the CBD. There we found three points to stay and made our search. The class was divided in three groups of four or five students, and with this organization, each group can pass in all of the points chose, seeing, comparing and understanding the difference between all of them.
We have stayed, approximately, 6 hours in there, but measuring every 15 min all the procedures.
To made our Fieldwork we needed:
- Barometer
-
A counter
-
Watch
- Thermometer
- GPS
-
Compass
-
Crayon
-
String
-
Radio
At the map below is possible to see where we stayed and how this center have a little number of trees and a big number of edifications.
We started our work measuring the canopy. The canopy is the high of the surrounding buildings (in the park we took an average tree) and is also important to determinate the edification level surrounding the area (in the case of the park, the level of vegetation on it). After it our teacher past for us the atmospheric pressure.
We received at class a chart with a lot of things that we have to observe, we started with the relative humidity, then we past to the temperature of the ground. We also have observed the clouds and their types, checked the wind, their direction and power. With a handy-counted we counted the cars that are passing. The last thing that we counted was the thermo sensation.
Based on my Research Question I will just analyze some of those characters that we have already seen. I believe that the relative humidity is an interesting aspect, because the humidity of the air can clean it, can do something, like purify it. Another aspect that I will catch for my analyzes is the opposite of the clean air, I will analyze the number of cars that have circulated at the CBD analyzed, they are a big reason for the pollution, and that interferes that the air blow, being, at this way, accumulated in just one place. The temperature of the ground, also, is something that will be analyze. The floor are made by concrete and it is a material tend that are non-reflective and so absorb heat durind the day-time. Dark-coloured roofs, all have a high thermal capacity which means that they are capable of storing heat during the day and releasing is slowly during the night.
Analysis and Evaluation of Data
The aim is to analyze all of our data and conclude if the “Parque da Luz” have or not an influence at the CBD.
1. Relative Humidity
The relative humidity gives a notion of the vapor localized in a place. Relative humidity indicates the likelihood of precipitation, dew, or fog. High relative humidity makes people feel hotter outside in the summer because it reduces the effectiveness of transpiration to cool the body by preventing the evaporation of perspiration from the skin. This effect is calculated in a heat index table.
The data collected was:
According to the graph we can see that the relative humidity is very instable, it is always changing and I cannot identify a reason for it. At my first review I though that it had something related with the time of day, because at the 14:45 the relative humidity at the “Parque da Luz” was very low, but, in the other hand, at 15:00 it was very high.
2. Circulation of Cars
The quantity of cars in one location can show us how much the place is “occupied” and how much the air of it is polluted, dense and dry. Effects that contribute with the heat island, causing the heat accumulation.
With our data collection, about the circulation of the cars at the streets of the CBD analyzed, we can see, in fact, that the circulation at the “Estação Júlio Prestes” is the biggest and, like I have said before, the avenue where this station is located is very expensive and is the principal if we compare it with the other one (Rua Mauá).
3. Temperature of the Ground
The temperature of the ground is an important item to be analyzed, in my opinion, because it means the quantity of heat accumulated and “reflected” at the atmosphere.
We can repair that all graphs have points in common. For example, at 13:00 they raised the temperature. And between 13:30 and 14:30, in “Parque da Luz” and “Estação da Luz”, the reached a continuously temperature.
In opposite of it, we had the “Estação Jùlio Prestes” that is raising and regressing.
Conclusion
With all this data collected that I have analyzed, I am able to answer my Research Question: “To what extent is the “Parque da Luz” an influence on the urban heat island at the region?”. The “Parque da Luz”, like I have suggested in my hypothesis, don’t make a big difference at the heat island at the region. The park was not big enough to supply the pollution of the cars, the temperature accumulated by the concrete, factories.
If I can remade this Fieldwork I will try to discover why the temperature of the floor on the “Estação Júlio Prestes” and the “Estação da Luz” was so big. I think, also, that we should, at the next time, visit other CBD’s and regions where the green area is a really important fact. To compare, analyze and have more data to distinguish them. At this way we could identify the real meaning of the green areas at the center.
And, of course, our fieldwork was made without professional instruments. We did not have enough time to analyze all the aspects that we have. Normally this study longs 30 month, at least. We have done it in just 6 hours. Our data are not really reliable.
References
Books
-
WAUGH, David. Geography - An Integrated Approach. Nelson, London. 1995.
-
CARTER, Harold. The study of urban geography. London. 1995.
-
MONTEIRO, Carlos A. de F. e MENDONÇA, Francisco. Clima Urbano. Contexto. 2003.
Web Pages
- GOOGLE EARTH. (Map of the region analyzed) Available from World Wide Web:
Appendix
Relative humidity - this measure was made by the media that we take for the dry and humid bulb. And the humid bulb and the dry bulb was measured with a thermometer, but to measure the humid bulb the thermometer can not be dry, so we were always putting water on it.
Temperature for the ground - To measured it we also use a thermometer, but this one must be on the floor, so we made a small orifice on the floor to put it.
Wind – to know the direction that it blows, we made a compass on the floor and someone hold a string “up” on it. So, when the winds blow, we knew, whit the direction that the strings goes, their intensity and direction.
Thermo sensation - To have it we received a list where we just have to found the intensity of the wind (horizontal) and the temperature of the day (vertical) and found the point where both of them cross
Results
Is possible to see that the higher humidity of the air was at the “Estação da Luz”, and not at the park like I though. Probably this result is very different at the morning, when the humidity of the air, maybe, is higher, but I am not able to conclude this criteria.
At the second graph we can repair that at the park just 5-7 cars have past there and that at the “Estação Júlio Prestes” the number of it was the highest, like I have also suspicious.
And at the third graph we can analyzed the temperature of the ground, and this point I have not been succeed. I though that at the “Estação Júlio Prestes” we were found the highest temperature of the ground, but it was not so. I can find just some answer for it, the corridor of wind, the air circulation can have an big influence on it. And both stations are located in places with concrete floor, and very opened place, so the sun shine can easily touch the ground, was not enough. This analyze needs another aspect, that it is really important for this conclusion. I imagine that the number of people that walks on the streets of the “Estação da Luz” can something to do with that, but this hypothesis need to be discuss, because my hypothesis was not enough to explain this fact.
The Map of the area can be located at page 3
to measure the atmospheric pressure
to count the cars and people
to know the direction of the wind
to mark the direction of the wind
to know the direction of the wind
to communicate our selves
All of the instructions are on the appendix.
All the results in the Appendix.
