These psychedelic images reveal what your weather app isn’t telling you

This article unveils the hidden heat revealed by psychedelic images, which regular weather apps often fail to disclose. Professor Vivek Shandas, founder and director of the Sustaining Urban Places Research Lab, demonstrates how different surfaces such as artificial turf, roads, and buildings absorb and release heat differently. Using an FLIR camera, Shandas shows the intense heat radiating off artificial turf, with temperatures reaching up to 150 degrees Fahrenheit in some spots, compared to lower temperatures in patches of real grass in the sun.

He points out that artificial surfaces, like those used in sports fields, can make the ambient temperature especially uncomfortable and harmful to players' joints and physiology. Shandas emphasizes the importance of shade, particularly for pedestrians, and highlights how neighborhoods with more trees and vegetation provide better cooling effects.

He explains that lower-income areas typically have less tree cover, resulting in higher heat levels and fewer opportunities for respite during the evening. The disparities in heat levels between neighborhoods can be significant, with differences of up to 7 degrees found on a single day. Shandas warns that as the planet continues to heat up, these disparities will only widen.

He emphasizes the need for cities to adopt various solutions to mitigate heat-related illnesses, including planting trees, developing urban farms, painting roofs white, and improving shaded areas for buses. The article concludes with the warning that extreme heat poses a significant and multifaceted emergency for cities.