Study on Summer Microclimate Analysis and Optimization Strategies for Urban Parks in Xinjiang—A Case Study of Mingzhu Park

Abstract

To investigate the impact of landscape characteristics on microclimate and thermal comfort in summer urban parks in Xinjiang, we focused on Mingzhu Park in Shihezi City. We collected microclimatic data through field measurements and analyzed the correlations among these factors, the physiological equivalent temperature (PET), and the landscape features. ENVI-met was utilized for microclimate simulations to assess the optimization effects. The results revealed that different landscape features significantly influenced the microclimate and thermal comfort. Trees and grass effectively lowered the temperature, increased humidity, reduced wind speeds, blocked solar radiation, and decreased the PET. Water bodies exposed to sunlight and without shade have a low reflectivity, leading to significant temperature increases. While evaporation can lower the surrounding temperatures, the water surface temperature remains higher than in shaded areas, raising temperatures there. The temperature, humidity, wind speed, and mean radiant temperature show significant correlations. The correlation ranking is as follows: mean radiant temperature (Tmrt) > air temperature (Ta) > relative humidity (RH) > wind speed (Va). After increasing the tree cover and designing dispersed water bodies, the average PET decreased by up to 0.67 °C, with the park experiencing the largest reduction of 1.86 °C. The PET in the eastern built-up area was reduced by 0.35 °C, and in the western built-up area, by only 0.13 °C.