As featured by Scientific American:
Researchers in Arizona have found that urban heat islands made worse by sun-baked asphalt roads can be mitigated by a relatively simple measure.
Paint the streets gray.
A study by Arizona State University and the city of Phoenix found that applying a reflective, gray-colored emulsion material to black asphalt resulted in a 10.5- to 12-degree-Fahrenheit drop in average road surface temperatures, while sunrise temperatures saw an average 2.4-degree drop.
“This is exactly what we were hoping for,” Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego said in a statement. “While there’s work to be done, it’s exciting to see a technology that has the potential to meet the demands of a growing desert city in a world where temperatures are constantly rising.”
Experts say road temperatures in the Phoenix area can rise to 180 degrees on a hot day. That absorbed energy remains in paved surfaces for hours, radiating heat back into nighttime air. Higher overnight temperatures
This article was originally published by Scientific American. Read the full article here.
