Service
Visual Journalism
Tools
QGIS, Illustrator
Atlanta's Heat Islands
A self-directed QGIS project mapping surface temperature across Atlanta against tree canopy coverage, exploring how green space correlates with urban heat and where the city could benefit most from more shade. Using NASA Landsat thermal imagery, I mapped out a final product that demonstrated wooded neighborhoods like Druid Hills run measurably cooler than sparsely covered ones like Vine City and English Avenue, which are poorer, urban neighborhoods.
Output
Infographic, bar chart + interactive slider
Surface temperature data from NASA/USGS Landsat 8–9 thermal imagery. Tree canopy data from the USGS National Land Cover Database (NLCD). Built in QGIS.
Chart: Urban Surface Temperature Comparison
This graphic illustrates how heat is experienced differently across urban environments by comparing surface and air temperatures on a typical hot summer day. While air temperature is the number most commonly reported, it doesn’t reflect the extreme heat stored by materials like asphalt, concrete, and dark rooftops. This also reinforces the importance of urban tree canopies and how they can cool the areas around them.
I sourced data from the EPA to translate a complex concept into a clear, visual comparison. The chart focuses on relative differences between surfaces, using a simplified range-based approach to make the data accessible without losing accuracy.
A before/after map slider comparing NASA/USGS Landsat land surface temperature and NLCD tree canopy coverage across Atlanta neighborhoods. Built in QGISusing Landsat 8/9 Band 10, 2024 data.
The overlap is hard to miss! Wherever tree canopy thins out, temperature climbs. Druid Hills and Candler Park, both heavily wooded and higher-income, run consistently cooler than Vine City and English Avenue, historically under-resourced neighborhoods with sparse tree cover. The pattern reflects decades of uneven investment in green infrastructure across the city.
Map Slider: Atlanta's Surface Temperature + Tree Canopies
I created a cross-section illustration showing how surface temperatures change from urban centers to rural landscapes. The heat arc reveals how dense downtown areas can be up to 8 degrees warmer than rural surroundings, putting the urban heat island effect into a single, easy-to-grasp visual.
Illustration: Heat Profile of a City
NEXT PROJECT