The LIFE ASTI program aims to develop an operational forecasting system to monitor the Urban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon in urban areas, but also to forecast extreme heatwave events that pose major risks for urban residents.
All over the world, but also in Europe, periods of particularly high temperatures are more frequently observed. As a result of the extreme temperatures there is an increase in mortality, especially in vulnerable groups such as the elderly. Year 2019 is one of the hottest years on the planet, while July, according to meteorologists at the Copernicus C3S program, was the hottest month ever observed on Earth [1]. In both June and July, heat waves occurred not only in areas of Southern Europe (Greece, Italy, France, Spain, Portugal), but also countries such as Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Belgium and Great Britain [2, 3]. According to official data, in France, where temperatures reached as high as 46 ° C, more than 1,500 people died from this year heat wave [4]. Victims have been reduced to this number because of the timely information and measures taken by the authorities, as in 2003 there were more than 15,000 deaths during a similar event.
The above demonstrates the importance of the LIFE ASTI project. GET is developing the LIFE ASTI system platform to disseminate the information to the public. Developed based on open source software, the platform manages information derived from meteorological forecast models, meteorological stations, and satellite data. The information is disseminated through an online web application as well as a mobile app that will provide personalized information to users.
The web application provides instant and easy access to data in the form of interactive maps and graphs. The main screen (dashboard) provides an overview of the thermal conditions in the area, as illustrated in the following figure:
Correspondingly, maps showing spatial temperature variations are also presented, that can highlight the areas where the Urban Heat Island effects are more intense.
The mobile app will also provide similar information. The app will be available free of charge for everyone, as is the information provided by it, and will initially be available for Android devices.
The web application of LIFE ASTI is available at: https://app.lifeast.eu/
More information about the project: https://lifeasti.eu/