NASA Space Apps Challenge

The NASA Space Apps Challege 2014 is running globally in almost 100 cities around the world, April 12-13. The challenges this year are in one of five themes: Earth Watch, Technology in Space, Human Spaceflight, Robotics and Asteroids. Super excited to announce that Public Lab is working with the EPA on the Earth Watch Challenge: Cool It!

This page will serve as the main Cool It Challenge + PL Collaborator info hub. Will be updated over the course of this week in preparation for the hackathon this weekend.

Cool It! Background

The heat island effect is described as a significant temperature difference between urban areas and surrounding rural areas. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “the annual mean air temperature of a city with 1 million people or more can be 1.8 to 5.4°F (1 to 3°C) warmer than its surroundings. On a clear, calm night, however, the temperature difference can be as much as 22°F (12°C).” ( EPA Heat Island Effect Basic Information page). Increased urban temperatures lead to increased energy consumption and costs for air conditioning, summertime peak energy demand, and air pollution, as well as increased heat-related illness and mortality.

Temperature and relative humidity sensors are coming down in cost and the ability to network them has been piloted. The opportunity is for you to think of new and actionable ways in which these data can help communities prepare for changes like the heat island effect.