In 2011, New York tried a simple way to beat peak summer heat by painting rooftops white; here’s how it helped cool cities

During summer, rooftops in cities become some of the hottest surfaces, soaking up sunlight throughout the day and slowly releasing that heat into the surrounding air. Back in 2011, New York City experimented with a simple solution to this problem. Instead of relying on costly technology, volunteers painted dark rooftops with reflective white coating to see if colour alone could help reduce heat.

Clear Temperature Difference Observed