1,2,2,1- 1Sapienza University of Rome, Faculty of mathematical, physical and natural sciences, Department of Physics, Rome, 00185, Italy (annalisa.dibernardino@uniroma1.it)
- 2CNR, Institute of Atmospheric Sciences and Climate (ISAC), via del Fosso del Cavaliere 100, Rome, 00133 Italy
- 3Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and the Environment (ENEA), Via Anguillarese 301, Santa Maria di Galeria (Rome), 00123, Italy
Urban Pollution Island (UPI) and Urban Heat Island (UHI) are two major issues affecting cities' liveability and sustainability, making them more vulnerable to climate change. The former phenomenon indicates the higher concentration of air pollutants in the city compared to its rural surroundings, while the latter refers to the higher air temperatures compared to rural neighboring, primarily due to the large extent of built-up.
Although the scientific community has now recognized that UPI and UHI could interact, making urban areas more susceptible to extreme weather and pollution events, the debate about the determination of the atmospheric mechanisms responsible for triggering or weakening the UPI-UHI relationship is still open.
This contribution aims to quantify and characterize the UPI in the urban area of Rome (Italy) by exploiting in-situ measurements of air pollutant concentrations collected over the period 2018-2023 by air quality stations belonging to the monitoring network managed by the Regional Agency for Environmental Protection (ARPA Lazio). The meteorological dataset is supplied by dense networks of instruments providing quality-checked datasets of WMO-compliant.
Different approaches for the determination of UPI are proposed and tested. Moreover, the temporal variability of the UPI Intensity is studied for both atmospheric particulate matters (PM10 and PM2.5) and the main trace gases present in metropolitan areas (NO2, NO, and O3). Furthermore, the UPI-UHI relationship during peculiar atmospheric events is investigated. For example, the UPI-UHI association is analyzed by selecting days with specific meteorological (heatwaves, calm wind, atmospheric stagnation) or air quality patterns (desert dust advection, lockdown period), mainly investigating the impact of atmospheric dynamics on UPI and UHI.
The results of the present study will help to deepen our understanding of UPI, providing useful information for the scientific community and stakeholders driving urban planning and pollution control actions.
How to cite: Di Bernardino, A., Argentini, S., Campanelli, M., Casasanta, G., Cecilia, A., Erriu, M., Falasca, S., and Siani, A. M.: Interaction between Urban Pollution Island and Urban Heat Island through in-situ observations in Rome (Italy) , 12th International Conference on Urban Climate, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 7–11 Jul 2025, ICUC12-381, https://doi.org/10.5194/icuc12-381, 2025.
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