As urban areas develop, changes occur in the landscape. Buildings, roads, and other infrastructure replace open land and vegetation. Surfaces that were once permeable and moist generally become impermeable and dry. Materials commonly used in urban areas for pavement and roofs, such as concrete and asphalt, have significantly different thermal bulk properties (including heat capacity and thermal conductivity) and surface radiative properties (albedo and emissivity) than the surrounding rural areas. This causes a change in the energy balance of the urban area, often leading to higher temperatures than surrounding rural areas. The tall buildings within many urban areas provide multiple surfaces for the reflection and absorption of sunlight, increasing the efficiency with which urban areas are heated. This is called the “urban canyon effect”. On a hot, sunny summer day, the sun can heat dry, exposed urban surfaces, like roofs and pavement; to temperatures 50°F to 90°F (27°C to 50°C) hotter than the air. The magnitude of surface urban heat islands varies with seasons, due to changes in the sun’s intensity as well as ground cover and weather. As a result of such variation, surface urban heat islands are typically largest in the summer.

Summertime urban heat islands are most intense when the sky is clear and winds are calm. Heavy cloud cover blocks solar radiation, reducing daytime warming in cities. Strong winds increase atmospheric mixing, lowering the urban-rural temperature difference. UHIs (Urban Heat Islands) can produce secondary effects on local meteorology, including the altering of local wind patterns, the development of clouds and fog, the humidity, and the rates of precipitation. The extra heat provided by the UHI leads to greater upward motion, which can induce additional shower and thunderstorm activity. In addition, the UHI creates during the day a local low pressure area where relatively moist air from its rural surroundings converges, possibly leading to more favourable conditions for cloud formation. Although urban climatologists have been studying urban heat islands for decades, community interest and concern regarding them has been more recent. This increased attention to heat-related environment and health issues has helped to advance the development of heat island reduction strategies, mainly trees and vegetation, green roofs, and cool roofs.