Framingham State, NOAA Project Seeks To Understand Extreme Heat In Framingham, Natick

FRAMINGHAM, MA — A new project from Framingham State University and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will seek to better understand extreme heat in the MetroWest, including locally in Framingham and Natick.

The project will be conducted by Framingham State's Christa McAuliffe Center for Integrated Science Learning, and researchers will work over the next year to learn as a part of the 2023 National Integrated Heat Health Information System Urban Heat Island Mapping Campaign.

NOAA has provided funding to Climate Adaptation Planning and Analytics Strategies to support campaigns for communities in 2023.

Urban heat islands — areas with few trees and more pavement that absorb heat — can be up to 20 degrees hotter than nearby neighborhoods with more trees, grass and less black asphalt.

With the increasing regularity of extreme weather and climate-related hazards across MetroWest, Framingham, Natick, Ashland and Holliston officials have identified extreme heat and higher temperatures as a top hazard to vulnerable residents in their communities, officials said.

Data collection around a 100-square-mile area in MetroWest will take place this summer using mobile and stationary sensors. That data will then be used to create urban heat island (UHI) maps and potentially identify overlaps among UHIs and disadvantaged demographics in Framingham and other MetroWest communities.

The McAuliffe Center’s proposal is one of just 18 selected in 14 states across the country and in one international city.

“This is a great opportunity to increase awareness of Urban Heat Islands in Framingham and MetroWest,” says Dr. Irene Porro, director of the McAuliffe Center. “We will be able to share evidence of the overlap between health, social and UHI issues to help generate policy recommendations to promote long-term, equitable solutions.”

The McAuliffe Center is partnering with local cities and towns on both the project, and to recruit volunteers who will join high school summer interns to collect data this summer.

The final product of the community science field campaigns is a set of high-resolution air temperature and humidity data, and a report by CAPA Strategies that provides a detailed analysis of the distribution of heat in the morning, afternoon and evening.

Interactive, high-resolution web maps of the modeled air temperature and heat index are also provided. The Center has committed $15,000 in cost-sharing to support the project.

About the Campaign

Now in its seventh year, the NOAA Urban Heat Island (UHI) mapping campaign addresses extreme heat, the number one weather-related cause of death in the U.S. for the last three decades.

Urban heat islands — areas with few trees and more pavement that absorb heat — can be up to 20 degrees hotter than nearby neighborhoods with more trees, grass and less black asphalt.

“The burden of heat is not shared equally in our urban areas,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad.

“Gathering this type of environmental intelligence helps communities measure their hottest places so they can develop strategies to reduce the dangerous effects of heat. Community by community, we’re working to create a climate-ready nation that is resilient in a changing world.”