Did you know that rising underground temperatures can become a significant climate issue? NBC News reports on a recent paper published in Nature that explores the impact of trapped heat on cities. This phenomenon, known as “underground climate change,” is distinct from atmospheric climate change caused by greenhouse gas imbalances. Instead, it arises from heat released into the ground by subways and buildings, leading to ground deformation and potential damage to urban structures. Alessandro Rotta Loria, the author of the paper from Northwestern University, describes it as a “silent hazard.” He explains, “There’s already a significant amount of heat beneath our feet, and this heat has caused the ground to deform.”
Major cities such as Chicago, New York, and London face the risk of sinking due to underground climate change. Rotta Loria’s research focuses on Chicago and indicates that underground heat associated with buildings and parking garages is spreading and increasing at a faster rate than surface temperatures. The only exception is Millennium Park in Chicago. “If we compare it with global warming and how surface temperatures have risen, it’s actually faster,” Rotta Loria shares. “The temperatures underground are rising faster in cities than at the surface.” To track temperatures, Rotta Loria and his team installed over 150 credit-card-size sensors across Chicago over a three-year period, as reported by Scientific American.
Rotta Loria reveals that temperatures under human-made structures can be as much as 77 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than undisturbed underground locations. Mitigation solutions include implementing thermal insulation and harnessing excess heat for geothermal energy. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg acknowledges the significance of addressing this issue within the administration’s climate agenda. He states, “We’re partnering with states on this because it may be that something down to the kind of cement or steel or asphalt that you’re using for the 21st century needs to look a little different than what we learned to build with 100 years ago,” as mentioned in the NBC report. (This new climate report offers some promising perspectives).
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