The influence of the urban environment on the thermal pollution of river runoff, using the example of the Ingoda River (Russia)

Abstract

The paper presents the results of a study of the own thermal radiation in the infrared range of the Ingoda River, flowing within the city limits of Chita (Russia) A track was built along the river runoff to determine the surface temperature of the object, with a length of 155 km. Space images obtained from Landsat-8 and Landsat-9 Earth remote sensing satellites in channel 10 were used for analysis. In this channel, its own thermal radiation is accepted at wavelengths lying in the range of 10.60…11.19 microns. As a result of the study, it was shown that the optimal time for observing thermal pollution of a river flow is winter time. It is shown that the increase in brightness temperature of the river surface due to the influence of the city in January is on average 6…8 K. This value is not registered in summer. The thermal trace along the Ingoda River from the city is observed over a distance of 7…10 km. Also, one of the results is that not only cities but also settlements with a population of no more than 5000 people affect thermal pollution of water bodies.