Influence of Land Use and Land Cover Change on Land surface temperature

Abstract

The rapid urbanization process has recently led to significant land use and land cover (LULC) changes, thereby affecting the climate and the environment. The purpose of this study is to analyze the LULC changes in Hefei City, Anhui Province, and their relationship with land surface temperature (LST). To achieve this goal, multitemporal Landsat data were used to monitor the LULC and LST between 2005 and 2015. The study also used correlation analysis to analyze the relationship between LST, LULC, and other spectral indices (NDVI, NDBI, and NDWI). The results show that the built-up land has expanded significantly, transforming from 488.26 km2 in 2005 to 575.64 km2 in 2015. It further shows that the mean LST in Hefei city has increased from 284.0 K in 2005 to 285.86 K in 2015. The results also indicate that there is a positive correlation between LST and NDVI and NDBI, while there is a negative correlation between LST and NDWI. This means that urban expansion and reduced water bodies will lead to an increase in LST.