#ThisWeekInData September 23, 2022

• September 23, 2022
• Civic Data

Scientific American: How Connected Cars Can Map Urban Heat Islands

A new approach to urban heat mapping utilizes citizen-scientists with thermometers in their internet-connected personal cars to collect data on temperature variation by block. This simple approach collects valuable data on hyper-local temperatures and helps planners mitigate high heat block-by-block.

Route Fifty: NYC plan would connect public housing residents to free broadband 

The new Big Apple Connect program will furnish residents in New York City Housing Authority developments with a cable box, router, and modem in order to connect with them to free, high-speed internet. This program aims to close the digital divide, a gap that is particularly large for residents of public housing. 

StateScoop: How cities are using data to fight climate inequity

Cities facing extreme heat, storms, and flooding are collecting and analyzing data to not only inform policy changes but to determine how to engage the local community, identify data deserts, where to plant trees, and design environmental mitigation plans. While not every city has a designated leader on climate change, cities directly addressing these issues through data serve as a blueprint nationally.  

NASA: NASA and Google Team up to Better Track Local Air Pollution 

Expanding upon their previous collaboration, NASA and Google are developing machine learning algorithms to link NASA data with Google Earth Engine data to produce high-res, real-time air quality maps for local officials. With these cutting-edge maps local governments can improve air quality monitoring and create better air-quality predictions to best address environmental harms.