Cities can do funny things to the weather and experts say this phenomenon is more widespread today than ever before.
"Scientists have known for 200 years that the temperature in a city can be higher than that in its environs....Hot city air, like hot air anywhere else, rises even more so because of the turbulence caused by tall buildings. When that air is damp enough and collides with colder layers above it, water can condense out as a sudden burst of rain, especially if there are few frontal systems to disrupt the layers, as in summer. In a spot storm above a city or just downwind of it, it's likely that nature alone isn't behind the downpour....Hot, waterlogged cities can be cooled off in the usual ways by limiting auto exhaust, for example. Using light-colored roofing and paving materials in place of black, heat-absorbing tar will also help."
Thanks to Connie Chung
FULL STORY: How Cities Make Their Own Weather

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