The 3D tool that keeps it cool - and saves lives

Research shows that high levels of heat radiation are harmful, especially for vulnerable groups such as small children, the elderly, and the sick. 

“The risks increase as our cities become more densely built while temperatures rise as a result of climate change. This is a factor that today needs to be prioritized more in urban planning”, says Marie Haeger Eugenson, who is the Technical Director for Air quality and climate at COWI and as a PhD in urban climate. 

COWI has delivered studies showing how heat radiation affects streets, building facades, and squares for many clients, also providing them with proposals for effective measures. So far, this has been done through mapping from a bird’s-eye view showing a neighbourhood or district. However, it can be difficult, based on a 2D map, to fully understand both how high temperatures are distributed over the surface and how effective various measures are.  

To find a solution, collaboration began between COWI and Infravis, employees at Chalmers who are experts in visualization. The project has now resulted in an innovative solution, VärmeViz. Here the results from heat mapping are integrated into a 3D platform that visualizes heat radiation in a virtual street view. 

“We can see in a 3D environment what the temperature is and how it changes during the day as the sun moves, for example on a street or at a building wall. We get a clearer picture of how heat radiation actually affects individuals moving in these places and how effective certain measures like vegetation are, says Sutthi Suteerasan, who has worked with Värmeviz* in his role as GIS and Remote Sensing Engineer at COWI’s climate adaptation group. 

The tool makes it possible to virtually see an environment from different perspectives, whether it is an existing street or building or a new neighbourhood in the planning stage. Colour gradations clarify which surfaces are particularly affected by heat radiation. This also makes it easier to see what preventive measures can be taken, for example planting trees, reducing hardened surfaces, or choosing facade materials that do not store as much heat. 

In a construction process, there are experts and decision-makers at many levels, from architects and engineers to politicians in building committees. Sutthi Suteerasan says that when all involved get a clearer picture of the risks of heat radiation, the chance increases that preventive measures will be prioritized. 

“We have looked at heat, but the same method can be used to map and visualize other factors that affect our health and comfort in urban environments. This can, for example, also be done based on data about wind speed, high noise levels, heavy rainfall, and air pollution, or a combination of these to identify “double effects” of a type of measure”, he says.  

VärmeViz has been financed by the COWI foundation and is a collaboration with Infravis, a national research collaboration funded by the Swedish Research Council with the aim of creating infrastructure for visualization and analysis of scientific data.