Just walking around the neighborhood near work there’s a huge difference in temperature depending on:
- How many shade trees? (Palms don’t help)
- How much space between the sidewalk and buildings? (This affects both airflow and reflected sunlight.)
- Is that space paved or plants?
Within the same block it can be…
- Comfortable along a stretch with trees and airflow, even if the shade isn’t continuous…
- Warm walking past a lawn where there’s a breeze, but no shade…
- Still warmer walking past a parking lot that’s reflecting heat…
- Unpleasantly hot in front of a blank wall that both blocks wind and doubles the amount of sunlight hitting you!
Expanded from this Mastodon post.
