Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

2022

Document Type

Dissertation

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Mitsova, Diana

Abstract

Urban heat islands present a significant public health threat for cities. A confluence of warming climate and increasing urbanization should exacerbate urban heat health risks since hotter temperatures result in heat-induced morbidity and mortality. Southeast Florida, the only region in the continental United States with a tropical climate, embodies these trends with a growing regional urban population and climbing heat index. Despite this growing threat, only a few studies have explored urban heat islands there, while urban heat vulnerability has been neglected as well. Thus, assessment of the contributing factors to increasing urban temperatures as well as identifying susceptible populations to UHI effects is imperative to mitigate environmental threats posed by heat islands. Analysis was first conducted to understand regional heat island geospatial characteristics and intensity then correlation analysis performed to understand the influence of meteorological variables. Furthermore, the influence of land use orchestration and surface characteristics (e.g., imperviousness) was analyzed using a spatial regression process. Additionally, a composite index blending dimensions of physical exposure, sensitivity (socioeconomic, health), and adaptive capacity was constructed to gauge vulnerability from hotter temperatures associated with UHIs. Principal Component Analysis weighting was used to group and weight variables then an assessment conducted evaluating composite performance compared to alternative models.

Extent

236 p.

Comments

Includes bibliography.|Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2022.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Includes bibliography.

Identifier

FA00013891

Format

pdf

Download

Share

COinS