Can urban planners control the weather? While climate change isn’t creating more storms, the ones we do have are becoming more intense. The recent hurricanes and floods are further proof of this extreme weather. However, new research shows that the layout of cities may have an effect on incoming storms.
Two papers, published in the journals Scientific Reports and Geophysical Research Letters, tracked storm patterns over Mumbai in India and a city in Argentina. They studied how landscapes influences the weather, and discovered some interesting effects. The buildings and structures in Mumbai seem to interrupt rainfall patterns. The city’s landscape creates a ribbon-effect in the storm, which intensifies the rainfall in some parts of the area.
Mumbai floods quite often, especially during monsoon season. In fact, earlier this year parts of the city received the equivalent of 11 days of heavy rainfall in just 12 hours. Understanding how the landscape influences weather can ensure that storm drains are placed in the most effective areas. In argentina, urban development caused 30 percent less precipitation downwind of the city. Since water is already hard to come by in the mountainous area, the researchers think these unintended consequences need to be taken into account as more developments are planned.
This research also discovered that storms tend to cluster over cities. This means that meteorologists may be more accurate if they focus on smaller areas. These findings could help shape future infrastructure designs and greatly improve severe weather monitoring.
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