TIL about the 'heat island' effect in my own city

I was listening to a podcast about urban planning and they said Phoenix, Arizona can be 15 degrees hotter downtown than the suburbs at night. They said it's because all the concrete and asphalt soak up heat all day and let it out slowly. It made me think about how planting more trees in cities isn't just pretty, it's a real cooling fix. Has anyone seen their town do a good job with this?

2 comments

2 Comments

morgan_ward615d ago

Seriously, is a few degrees at night even a big deal though?

irisross5d ago

I used to wonder the same thing about a few degrees at night. Then I saw how much it messed with my sleep and made the AC run nonstop. It really does add up.