Ecologists measured the temperature of urban surfaces in the heat: the results were stunning

Ecologists measured the temperature of urban surfaces in the heat: the results were stunning facebook.com/ngoforza

Anna Velyka

The maximum indicator exceeded 70°С

During the lunchtime rush, from 13:30 to 14:30, experts from the NGO Forza walked with a thermal imager along the stretch of Slovianska-Kyivska embankment and Bohdan Khmelnytsky Square in Uzhhorod and found that in the shade of trees and in the sun, the measurement results differ by several dozen degrees.

They wrote about this on the organization's Facebook page.

Here's what they found:

  • asphalt heated up to 59.2°C in the sun, up to 34.5°C in the shade;
  • paving stones in the sun had a temperature of 57.3°С, in the shade – 41.4°С;
  • the trunk of a tree in the sun (mainly the crown) warmed up to 62.1°С, in the shade – up to 32.7°С;
  • the lava heated up to 66.8°C in the sun, and 36.3°C in the shade.

facebook.com/ngoforza

Illustration: facebook.com/ngoforza

facebook.com/ngoforza

Illustration: facebook.com/ngoforza

The record for the degree of heating was the covering of the skate-ground on the square. B. Khmelnytskyi – the thermal imager showed 70.5°С! Activists noted that it is always full of children, and there is no shade at all.

Natalya Voloshina, manager of the "Forza" NGO, emphasized that with the experiment in Uzhhorod, they once again proved the importance of preserving large trees in the city.

"Of course, the temperature is affected by many factors, not only the sun, but also the properties of the material, but you can't find a better natural air conditioner than a tree with a sprawling crown!" – summed up the NGO "Forza".

According to Voloshina, in Uzhgorod, as in many other cities, there are many problems with the management of city services regarding trees. A particularly big problem is crowning, with the help of which funds from the city budget are used, as well as the planning of new microdistricts without taking into account green spaces.

In May, EcoPolitic told that in Lviv region in 2 months landed more than 5 million trees. We also published infographics according to the rate of tree planting in Ukraine over the last 8 years.

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