Articles | Volume 19, issue 13
https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-19-6001-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-19-6001-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Evaluating the radiative fidelity of WRF-driven PALM (v25.04) in high-resolution using RTM: impact of diverse urban morphology and vegetation on short-wave radiation
Jelena Radović
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Department of Atmospheric Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University Prague, V Holešovičkách 2, 180 00 Prague 8, Czech Republic
Michal Belda
Department of Atmospheric Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University Prague, V Holešovičkách 2, 180 00 Prague 8, Czech Republic
Martin Bureš
Department of Complex Systems, Institute of Computer Science of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Pod Vodárenskou věží 271/2, 182 00 Prague, Czech Republic
Kryštof Eben
Department of Complex Systems, Institute of Computer Science of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Pod Vodárenskou věží 271/2, 182 00 Prague, Czech Republic
Jan Geletič
Department of Atmospheric Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University Prague, V Holešovičkách 2, 180 00 Prague 8, Czech Republic
Department of Complex Systems, Institute of Computer Science of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Pod Vodárenskou věží 271/2, 182 00 Prague, Czech Republic
Jakub Jura
Department of Instrumentation and Control Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, Technická 4, 166 07 Praha 6, Czech Republic
Pavel Krč
Department of Complex Systems, Institute of Computer Science of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Pod Vodárenskou věží 271/2, 182 00 Prague, Czech Republic
Hynek Řezníček
Department of Complex Systems, Institute of Computer Science of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Pod Vodárenskou věží 271/2, 182 00 Prague, Czech Republic
Jaroslav Resler
Department of Complex Systems, Institute of Computer Science of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Pod Vodárenskou věží 271/2, 182 00 Prague, Czech Republic
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The analysis summarizes how sensitive the modelling of urban environment is to changes in physical parameters describing the city (e.g. reflectivity of surfaces) and to several heat island mitigation scenarios in a city quarter in Prague, Czech Republic. We used the large-eddy simulation modelling system PALM 6.0. Surface parameters connected to radiation show the highest sensitivity in this configuration. For heat island mitigation, urban vegetation is shown to be the most effective measure.
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Short summary
In this experiment, the Parallelized Large-Eddy Simulation Model (PALM)’s performance in simulating incoming and outgoing short-wave radiation in a densely built, highly heterogeneous urban environment was validated. In particular, we assessed whether the micro-scale model realistically resolves the effects of three-dimensional urban morphology and vegetation on short-wave radiation, including its propagation, shading, reflection, and attenuation within the simulated domain.
In this experiment, the Parallelized Large-Eddy Simulation Model (PALM)’s performance in...