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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Building A Long-Time Series For Weather And Extreme Weather In The Straits Settlements: A Multi-Disciplinary Approach To The Archives Of Societies, Fiona Williamson Apr 2021

Building A Long-Time Series For Weather And Extreme Weather In The Straits Settlements: A Multi-Disciplinary Approach To The Archives Of Societies, Fiona Williamson

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

In comparison to the Northern Hemisphere, especially Europe and North America, there is a scarcity of information regarding the historic weather and climate of Southeast Asia and the Southern Hemisphere in general. The reasons for this are both historic and political, yet that does not mean that such data do not exist. Much of the early instrumental weather records for Southeast Asia stem from the colonial period and, with some countries and regions changing hands between the European powers, surviving information tends to be scattered across the globe making its recovery a long and often arduous task. This paper focuses …


Singapore's Climate Action: It Is Time To Be More Ambitious, Winston T. L. Chow Jun 2020

Singapore's Climate Action: It Is Time To Be More Ambitious, Winston T. L. Chow

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Some nations have declared net-zero carbon emission targets by 2050. Businesses and the people here know Singapore can punch above its weight. The government should lend its support.


Creating Singapore’S Longest Monthly Rainfall Record From 1839 To The Present, Elaine Gao, Bertrand Timbal, Fiona Williamson Dec 2018

Creating Singapore’S Longest Monthly Rainfall Record From 1839 To The Present, Elaine Gao, Bertrand Timbal, Fiona Williamson

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Currently,the identification of decadal variability is limited by the lack of long-termmeteorological datasets; Singapore’s reliable contemporary network of automaticmeteorological stations (AWS) provides only about 30 years of rainfall data for thewhole island. In this study, rainfall data, sourced fromhistorical archives and recording monthly rainfall pre-dating the start ofofficial MacRitchie observations, are compiled from various locations acrossthe island. By making use of the contemporary AWS network, we evaluate thespatial relationship of rainfall between the historical sites and the currentMacRitchie site. This enables us to reconstruct historical rainfall atMacRitchie using the archive data, thereby building a single-location extendedrainfall record (though discontinuous) from …


The Impact Of Weather Extremes On Urban Resilience To Hydro-Climate Hazards: A Singapore Case Study, Winston T. L. Chow Jul 2017

The Impact Of Weather Extremes On Urban Resilience To Hydro-Climate Hazards: A Singapore Case Study, Winston T. L. Chow

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Changing frequencies and intensities of extreme weather events directly affect settlement vulnerability; when combined with rapid urbanization, these factors also influence urban resilience to climate-related hazards. This article documents how urban resilience can generally be maximized, before examining how it is impacted by extreme hydro-climatic events (i.e. droughts and floods), with a specific case examination for Singapore. In particular, analysis of Singapore’s climate from 1950 to 2015 indicates (1) a warmer environment, and (2) recent periods of more intense surface dryness. Lastly, this article suggests how specific climate information regarding extreme event attribution can aid municipal stakeholders involved in urban …


A Historical Review And Assessment Of Urban Heat Island Research In Singapore, Matthias Roth, Winston T. L. Chow Nov 2012

A Historical Review And Assessment Of Urban Heat Island Research In Singapore, Matthias Roth, Winston T. L. Chow

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This historical review of 20 studies since the 1960s examines the influence of urban development on the thermal environment in Singapore, a fast growing tropical island city-state. Past observations are critically assessed with regard to experimental controls and station metadata. Given the availability of historical climate and developmental data spanning almost 50 years, changes in urban heat island (UHI) intensity and spatial coverage can be traced temporally. Rapid urban expansion in Singapore is clearly reflected in spatially and temporally changing air and surface temperature patterns. The nocturnal canopy-layer UHI intensity – measured as the difference between the commercial urban core …


Temporal Dynamics Of The Urban Heat Island Of Singapore, Winston T. L. Chow, Matthias Roth Jul 2006

Temporal Dynamics Of The Urban Heat Island Of Singapore, Winston T. L. Chow, Matthias Roth

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The temporal variability of the canopy‐level urban heat island (UHI) of Singapore is examined for different temporal scales on the basis of observations during a 1‐year period. Temperature data obtained from different urban areas (commercial, Central Business District (CBD), high‐rise and low‐rise housing) are compared with ‘rural’ reference data and analysed with respect to meteorological variables and differences in land use. The results indicate that the peak UHI magnitude occurs 3–4 h (>6 h) after sunset in the commercial area, (at other urban sites). Higher UHI intensities generally occur during the southwest monsoon period of May–August, with a maximum …