Application of Remote Sensing Techniques and Geographic Information Systems to Analyze Land Surface Temperature in Response to Land Use/Land Cover Change in Greater Cairo Region, Egypt

摘要

The Greater Cairo Region (GCR), Egypt has experienced rapid urban expansion and broad development over the past several decades. Due to such development, this region faces many environmental consequences. In order to mitigate such consequences, it is essential to examine the historical change to measure the urban sprawl of GCR, and its effect on land surface temperature (LST). The objective of this study is to fulfill this goal. It does so by generating land use/land cover (LULC) maps derived from Landsat 5 TM for 1990 and 2003 and Landsat 8 OLI for 2016, using several classification techniques. A spectral radiance model and a web-based atmospheric correction model were used to successfully evaluate LST from thermal bands of Landsat data. Overall accuracy of Landsat derived land use data were 90.3%, 96.5% and 94.9% for years 1990, 2003 and 2016, respectively. The LULC change analysis revealed vegetation loss to urban land by an amount of 7.73% and from barren lands to urban uses by 8.70% within a 26-year timespan (1990-2016). This rapid urban growth significantly decreases vegetation areas, consequently increasing the LST and modifying the urban microclimate. Results from this study can help policy-makers characterize the evolution of urban construction for future developments.