Application of Landsat-8 OLI/TIRS to assess the Urban Heat Island (UHI)

Abstract

Urban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon is a particular climate change impact in urban areas that can trigger adverse effects on environmental conditions. This effect is usually worsened by increasing anthropogenic activities. While the impact of UHI has mostly been studied in metropolitans around the world, few studies are presented investigating the outcome in mid-sized cities. This study aims to assess spatial distribution of Urban Heat Island (UHI) in Bogor city, Indonesia, by utilizing thermal data (Band-10) from Landsat-8 OLI/TIRS. The Landsat imagery was acquired in May 2021, in the beginning of the dry season. The result of study shows Land Surface Temperature (LST) values ranged from 26.23 to 33.76°C, with an average temperature of 31.29°C, while the range of NDVI was between 0.08 to 0.55. Further, the correlation between Land Surface Temperature (LST) and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was calculated to investigate the relationship between vegetation density and surface temperature condition for examining the outlook and possibilities to minimize the impact of UHI through improving vegetal conditions. A negative correlation suggests that expanding vegetation coverage can reduce urban heat island impacts by 35%, and other factors influence the rest. The land surface temperature threshold to determine UHI is 32.01°C, so the UHI area was identified at ca. 13.12 km2 around the city centre.