A New Approach for Generating Human Biometeorological Information Based on Gridded High-Resolution Data (Basic Data of Test-Reference-Years)

Abstract

The assessment of human-biometeorological information requires appropriate preparation of data and suitable visualisation of results. Human-biometeorological information can be valuable for tourists and visitors, but also for citizens looking for information about their neighbourhood or a new residence. Cities or health resorts can also promote their climate conditions for health rehabilitation. To derive this human-biometeorological information in a unified, comprehensive, and comprehensible form, a tool was developed. The input information contains the coordinates of a place and/or area of interest, and the time period of data chosen by the user. For meteorological data, the basic dataset of Test-Reference-Years from the German Meteorological Service is used, containing hourly meteorological data for the time period from 1995 to 2012, covering Germany with a spatial resolution of 1 km². Based on the Perceived Temperature as a thermal index, days with heat stress and cold stimulus are identified. In this process, the effects of short-term human acclimatisation on the thermal environment are considered by using a variable threshold value based on the thermal conditions of the last 30 days. The results of the tool’s application consist of several frequency diagrams, the Climate-Tourism/Transfer-Information-Scheme, a diagram of heat waves, and maps of the area of interest, displaying the spatial distribution of heat stress and cold stimulus. As an example, the (bio-)meteorological conditions of the region of southern Baden around Freiburg and the Black Forest, including the health resort, Hinterzarten, are analysed.