Examination and assessment of insolation conditions of streetscapes of traditional settlements in the Eastern Mediterranean area

Abstract

Vernacular settlements are characterized by their adaptability to local climatic conditions, topography and available resources, in terms of materials and methods of construction, while, most of them incorporate various bioclimatic design concepts. The present study examines the solar conditions in traditional settlements in a Mediterranean climate, caused by topographical features and the built form. The main aim is to explore traditional planning configurations of streetscapes in different elevations in order to discern built form patterns and planning strategies that are effective in ameliorating outdoor user-comfort conditions. For this purpose, case studies are examined from three rural traditional settlements in Cyprus; an island which features a typical Mediterranean climate. The chosen settlements are selected because they represent a comprehensive cross section of the varied topographical conditions, built forms and climatic zones representative of Mediterranean regions. Streetscapes in these villages are systematically investigated in terms of monthly and quarterly insolation simulations and the results are analyzed in terms of sunlight hours, incident solar radiation, shading percentages and sky view factors. The research findings show that certain geographical characteristics affect incident solar radiation at street corridors and related building facades. It is also made evident that traditional villages in mountainous areas – due to their denser building form and deeper street corridors compared to the more dispersed built form patterns found in the lowland areas – increase local shading patterns significantly. This particular built layout in the mountainous settlements has the potential to improve outdoor thermal user-comfort conditions during the summer. In contrast, overshadowing occurs in the winter for the vast majority of street corridors in all case studies and this is usually moderated by the incorporation of widenings of the street corridors to permit solar penetration.