CRII: CHS, SCH: Monitoring Heat Stress Through Environmental Sensing

Indiana University, Bloomington IN

Investigators

Abstract

Heat waves are responsible for more deaths each year than all other natural disasters combined. In urban areas, extreme heat events are intensified by the Urban Heat Island effect, which results in even more extreme microclimates due to the physical layouts of cities, the use of certain building materials, and a reduction in natural landscapes. In this project, the investigator will identify landscape design recommendations to mitigate extreme heat hazards in urban microclimates. Body-worn and ambient sensors will be used to understand urban heat wave patterns and the influences that heat and humidity have on physiological functions such as the core body temperature of individuals utilizing outdoor urban areas. A wearable and ambient sensor network will be extended and field-tested in Bloomington, Indiana. Geographic information systems will be used to classify urban areas within Bloomington into microclimates in order to ascertain exposure levels of heat and humidity hazards to residents. A real-time monitoring system for microclimates during heat extremes will be developed using participatory design with stakeholders such as city planners, public health officials, green infrastructure experts, and citizens. Results will include a new understanding of the effects of extreme heat events on human health and wellbeing and will provide methods to mitigate heat hazards through more effective use of information technology and urban green infrastructure. Urban heat extremes result in the highest number of fatalities across all types of natural disasters each year. The design of cities and urban areas contributes to the intensity of heat events through the Urban Heat Island effect. The investigator aims to use wearable sensors and embedded environmental sensors to better understand effects of extreme heat microclimates on human health. The method includes an extension of an existing person-environment sensor network to collect human physiological data and ambient temperature variances in microclimates. Current data and software tools will be used to explore, classify and integrate data to determine relationships between microclimate heat events throughout the city, interactions with humidity and wind speed variations, and human physiological responses, such as core body temperature. Through participatory design, prototype visualizations of real-time climactic changes in microclimates will be developed. This research will contribute to collaborative efforts among stakeholders to minimize risks to human health and design green infrastructure to mitigate the harmful effects of extreme heat events. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.