Feasibility Analysis of Open-government Data for the Automated Calculation of the Micro-climatic Attributes of Urban Units of Observation in the City of Vienna

Abstract

A quantified analysis of the urban climate in general and the urban heat island phenomena in particular is a complex endeavor and requires a variety of data streams. Urban units of observations are meant to specify well-defined spatial domains within a city toward the representation and study of the microclimatic conditions (e.g., via simulation applications). The European Union generally mandates the implementation of open data interfaces. Administrative data is made publicly accessible to increase transparency and to support participation and collaboration. The present contribution analyses the feasibility of open government data for the automated calculation of the microclimatic attributes of urban units of observation in the city of Vienna. The proposed algorithms and framework are briefly introduced to explain which data sources are needed and how the data is classified. Suitable data sources include geo- referenced, two- and three- dimensional vector, raster as well as semantic data. A sample application scenario presents the results of aspect ratio calculation using the example of the inner city of Vienna.