Using thermal IR imaging for identification of cold air influxes and topoclimatological investigations - a case study from Roztocze National Park

Meteorological research has been carried out in Roztocze Region for many years by numerous scientists. Nevertheless, information about its climate is limited to general climatic classifications of Poland. Knowledge about local climates of this specific area is rather limited. In this case study, the authors combined traditional methods of investigating this topic with ground-based thermal IR imaging not used in small-scale climatology so far.
Thermal IR images of places where cold air influxes are expected were taken as a first step of fieldworks. Then, measurements of temperature and relative humidity spatial differentiation were conducted at chosen sites. Simultaneously, continuous meteorological measurements were performed in different local ecosystems with the aim of, e.g., verifying hypotheses about differences of thermal conditions at those sites. The results of fieldwork were processed and analysed using GIS and then related to local topographical conditions assumed from satellite imaging land cover.
As a conclusion of the investigation, it can be stated that the influence of forest on grassland phytoclimate during advection of cold air can be observed only in a limited range of distances. This interaction changes according to the type of weather, relief of the land and type of vegetation. It is also worth emphasizing that using a handheld thermal IR camera, GIS analysis and satellite imaging can be considerably helpful in research on local climate and extreme thermal phenomena.

罗兹托切地区（Roztocze Region）多年来已有众多学者开展气象研究。然而，关于该区域气候的资料仅局限于波兰的通用气候分类体系，针对这一特定区域的局地气候认知仍较为匮乏。本案例研究中，研究者将该主题的传统研究方法与此前在小尺度气候学中尚未应用的地面热红外成像（ground-based thermal IR imaging）技术相结合。
本次野外工作的第一步，是在预期有冷空气入侵的区域拍摄热红外影像；随后，在选定的观测点位开展气温与相对湿度空间分异的观测。与此同时，在不同的局地生态系统中开展连续气象观测，例如用于验证有关各点位热环境差异的假说。研究人员借助地理信息系统（Geographic Information System，GIS）对野外工作所得数据进行处理与分析，并将分析结果与通过卫星遥感土地覆盖数据推导出的局地地形条件进行关联。
本研究可得出如下结论：在冷空气平流过程中，森林对草原植物气候的影响仅在有限的距离范围内可被观测到。这种相互作用会随天气类型、地形地貌以及植被类型的不同而发生变化。此外值得强调的是，手持式热红外相机、GIS分析与卫星遥感技术可为局地气候及极端热现象研究提供有力支撑。