Variation in diurnal and seasonal surface urban heat island intensity across different climatic zones

The surface urban heat island (SUHI) is a significant human change of the earth’s surface that can affect the local thermal climate by affecting surface energy flow at the surface. This study aimed to evaluate diurnal and seasonal variations of surface urban heat islands (SUHI) for study areas (Erbil & Baghdad) using LST values obtained from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Satellite. SUHI intensity calculates the difference between LST between urban and rural areas. Two months (January as winter days and July as summer days) use for seasonal variations and daytime and nighttime for diurnal variations. The study results show that, generally, LST values were higher in summer than in winter, during the day and at night for both cities. As for SUHI intensity, the highest value was in the summer of Baghdad, when it was (7.2°C -7.1°C).