Urban Morphology and its Impact on Urban Heat Islands: A Comparative Analysis of Open Low-Rise and Compact Low-Rise Residential Areas of Amritsar City

Urban areas evolve and their character is shaped by factors, such as landuse, building density, street patterns and public spaces. Cities are continuously changing in physical form and structure and they expand due to population growth and migration, thereby increasing built-up areas. The study of urban areas’ evolution and their interaction with environmental factors, such as urban flooding, urban heat and air flows, which influence urban life, is termed urban morphology. Therefore, it is crucial to study the urban morphology of the city to assess its impact and contribution to urban heat. Urban areas exhibit significant variations in built-up forms, landuses, street patterns and alignments, building and construction materials and the availability of green spaces. These factors result in variations in heat absorption, retention and later release in local environments, leading to urban heat island effects. The present study conducts a detailed comparative analysis of two distinct zones of Amritsar city to understand the contribution of different factors to increased urban heat impact. The two zones studied in the paper include open and compact low-rise urban zones of the city. After analyzing temperature variations and factors contributing to them, it has been concluded that the open low-rise zone particularly benefits from wider streets and wind flow, as well as the presence of green areas and green cover, which contribute to lower air temperatures. In contrast, the compact low-rise zone has experienced higher surface temperatures due to densely packed buildings, less green cover and narrow streets, which trap heat at night, resulting in higher nighttime temperatures than in the open low-rise zone.