Climate change is becoming a global threat to human well-being and the sustainability of the planet Earth. The central cores of urban centers are significantly observed warmer than their surrounding outskirts or rural areas, which is identified as the urban heat island (UHI) effect fueled by massive Land Use Land Cover (LULC) change. The main research aim was to examine the Spatio-temporal variation of UHI dynamics based on the land surface temperature (LST), Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and built-up density in the urban centers (Jimma, Bedelle, Bonga, and Sokorru) landscape using techniques of remote sensing. In this study, Landsat thematic mapper (TM) for 1987 and Landsat Operational Imagery (OLI) for 2018 in the extraction of LST were used for examining UHI. Also, LULC, NDVI and built-up density of the urban centers were analyzed. The results of the study showed that the urban core had greater LST and UHI values, due to an increase of built-up density and a decline of green space. The result of LST mean value range rose from 20.1 ℃ (Bonga) to 23.3 ℃ (Sokorru) in 1987 and 22.67 ℃ (Bedelle) to 24.74 ℃ (Bonga), and 24.72 ℃ (Sokorru) in 2018, while the maximum observed LST value range from 28.97 ℃ (Jimma) in 1987 to 32.61 ℃ (Bonga) in 2018. The maximum range of UHI mean value was from 11.23 ℃ (1987) to 14.04 ℃ (2018), while the maximum observed UHI value ranged from 19.63 ℃ in 1987 to 23.32 ℃ in 2018 over Jimma city. The computed correlation at 5% significance results showed LULC change has a significant association with surface air temperature (r = 0.621, Sig. (2-tailed) = 0.031) accompanied by UHI impacts. We recommended urban authorities, policymakers, and urban planners should consider the effects of LST and UHI in urban planning to realize climate-smart urban centers of tomorrow in urban centers of southwest Ethiopia.

1. Kassahun S, Tiwari A. Urban development in Ethiopia: challenges and policy responses. Available online: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2154776 (accessed on 10 September 2024).

2. Yu Z, Yao Y, Yang G, et al. Strong contribution of rapid urbanization and urban agglomeration development to regional thermal environment dynamics and evolution. Forest Ecology and Management. 2019; 446: 214-225. doi: 10.1016/j.foreco.2019.05.046

3. Ministry of Finance and Economic Development (MoFED). Ethiopia: Building on Progress: A Plan for Accelerated and Sustained Development to End Poverty (PASDEP). Ministry of Finance and Economic Development (MoFED), Addis Ababa. 2006. Available online: https://www.afdb.org/fileadmin/uploads/afdb/Documents/Policy- Documents/Plan_for_Accelerated_and_Sustained_%28PASDEP%29_final_July_2007_Volume_I_3.pdf (accessed on 10 September 2024).

4. Kim SW, Brown RD. Urban heat island (UHI) intensity and magnitude estimations: A systematic literature review. Science of The Total Environment. 2021; 779: 146389. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146389

5. Doan VQ, Kusaka H, Nguyen TM. Roles of past, present, and future land use and anthropogenic heat release changes on urban heat island effects in Hanoi, Vietnam: Numerical experiments with a regional climate model. Sustainable Cities and Society. 2019; 47: 101479. doi: 10.1016/j.scs.2019.101479

6. Nwakaire CM, Onn CC, Yap SP, et al. Urban heat island studies with emphasis on urban pavements: a review. Sustain Cities Society. 2020; 63:102476. doi: 10.1016/j.scs.2020.102476

7. Wang L, Hou H, Weng J. Ordinary least squares modelling of urban heat island intensity based on landscape composition and configuration: A comparative study among three megacities along the Yangtze River. Sustainable Cities and Society. 2020; 62: 102381. doi: 10.1016/j.scs.2020.102381

8. Matloob A, Sarif MdO, Um JS. Evaluating the inter-relationship between OCO-2 XCO2 and MODIS-LST in an Industrial Belt located at Western Bengaluru City of India. Spatial Information Research. 2021; 29(3): 257-265. doi: 10.1007/s41324-021-00396-4

9. Sadiq Khan M, Ullah S, Sun T, et al. Land-Use/Land-Cover Changes and Its Contribution to Urban Heat Island: A Case Study of Islamabad, Pakistan. Sustainability. 2020; 12(9): 3861. doi: 10.3390/su12093861

10. Coutts AM, Beringer J, Tapper NJ. Impact of Increasing Urban Density on Local Climate: Spatial and Temporal Variations in the Surface Energy Balance in Melbourne, Australia. Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology. 2007; 46(4): 477-493. doi: 10.1175/jam2462.1

11. Voogt JA. Urban Heat Island. In: Munn T (editor). Encyclopedia of Global Environmental Change. Wiley, Chichester; 2002. pp. 660-666.

12. Oke TR, Mills G, Christen A, et al. Urban climates. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; 2017.

13. Oke TR. Canyon geometry and the nocturnal urban heat island: Comparison of scale model and field observations. Journal of Climatology. 1981; 1(3): 237-254. doi: 10.1002/joc.3370010304

14. World Meteorological Organization (WMO). WMO Guidance on the Canopy Layer Urban Heat Island. 2021. doi: 10.5194/ems2021-301, 2021

15. Zhou Z, Xie Q. Impact of Urbanization on Urban Heat Island and Effect Based on TM Imagery in Wuhan China. Environmental Engineering and Management Journal. 2015; 14(3): 647-655. doi: 10.30638/eemj.2015.072

16. Dessu T, Korecha D, Hunde D, et al. Long-Term Land Use Land Cover Change in Urban Centers of Southwest Ethiopia From a Climate Change Perspective. Frontiers in Climate. 2020; 2. doi: 10.3389/fclim.2020.577169

17. Yuvaraj RM. Extents of predictors for land surface temperature using multiple regression model. Scientific World Journal. 2020. doi: 10.1155/2020/3958589

18. Zhang B, Xie G di, Gao J xi, et al. The cooling effect of urban green spaces as a contribution to energy-saving and emission-reduction: A case study in Beijing, China. Building and Environment. 2014; 76: 37-43. doi: 10.1016/j.buildenv.2014.03.003

19. He BJ. Towards the next generation of green building for urban heat island mitigation: Zero UHI impact building. Sustainable Cities and Society. 2019; 50: 101647. doi: 10.1016/j.scs.2019.101647

20. Qiao Z, Liu L, Qin Y, et al. The Impact of Urban Renewal on Land Surface Temperature Changes: A Case Study in the Main City of Guangzhou, China. Remote Sensing. 2020; 12(5): 794. doi: 10.3390/rs12050794

21. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Climate Change 2022—Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability: Working Group II Contribution to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge University Press; 2023.

22. Amani-Beni M, Zhang B, Xie GD, et al. Impacts of Urban Green Landscape Patterns on Land Surface Temperature: Evidence from the Adjacent Area of Olympic Forest Park of Beijing, China. Sustainability. 2019; 11(2): 513. doi: 10.3390/su11020513

23. Portela CI, Massi KG, Rodrigues T, et al. Impact of urban and industrial features on land surface temperature: Evidences from satellite thermal indices. Sustainable Cities and Society. 2020; 56: 102100. doi: 10.1016/j.scs.2020.102100

24. Grimmond S, Bouchet V, Molina LT, et al. Integrated urban hydrometeorological, climate and environmental services: Concept, methodology and key messages. Urban Climate. 2020; 33: 100623. doi: 10.1016/j.uclim.2020.100623

25. Wang H, Zhang Y, Tsou J, et al. Surface Urban Heat Island Analysis of Shanghai (China) Based on the Change of Land Use and Land Cover. Sustainability. 2017; 9(9): 1538. doi: 10.3390/su9091538

26. Alfraihat R, Mulugeta G, Gala TS. Ecological evaluation of urban heat island in Chicago city, USA. Journal of Atmospheric Pollution. 2016; 4(1): 23–29. doi: 10.12691/jap-4-1-3

27. Kafy AA, Abdullah-Al-Faisal, Rahman MdS, et al. Prediction of seasonal urban thermal field variance index using machine learning algorithms in Cumilla, Bangladesh. Sustainable Cities and Society. 2021; 64: 102542. doi: 10.1016/j.scs.2020.102542

28. Nuruzzaman Md. Urban Heat Island: Causes, Effects and Mitigation Measures—A Review. International Journal of Environmental Monitoring and Analysis. 2015; 3(2): 67. doi: 10.11648/j.ijema.20150302.15

29. Li X, Stringer LC, Dallimer M. The Spatial and Temporal Characteristics of Urban Heat Island Intensity: Implications for East Africa’s Urban Development. Climate. 2021; 9(4): 51. doi: 10.3390/cli9040051

30. Chaka DS, Oda TK. Understanding land surface temperature on rift areas to examine the spatial variation of urban heat island: the case of Hawassa, southern Ethiopia. GeoJournal. 2019; 86(2): 993-1014. doi: 10.1007/s10708-019-10110-5

31. Moisa MB, Merga BB, Gemeda DO. Urban heat island dynamics in response to land use land cover change: a case of Jimma city, southwestern Ethiopia. Theoretical and Applied Climatology. 2022; 149(1-2): 413-423. doi: 10.1007/s00704-022-04055-y

32. Degefu MA, Argaw M, Feyisa GL, et al. Dynamics of green spaces- Land surface temperature intensity nexus in cities of Ethiopia. Heliyon. 2023; 9(2): e13274. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e13274

33. Tesfamariam S, Govindu V, Uncha A. Spatio-temporal analysis of urban heat island (UHI) and its effect on urban ecology: The case of Mekelle city, Northern Ethiopia. Heliyon. 2023; 9(2): e13098. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e13098

34. Jimma City Administration. Spatial Planning and Socioeconomic Assessment of the Master Plan Under the Revision Document. Jimma City Administration. 2019.

35. Ethiopian Meteorological Institute. Delivering world-class weather and climate services to Ethiopia. Available online: http://www.ethiomet.gov.et (accessed on 1 September 2024).

36. Central Statistical Agency (CSA). Population Statistical Abstract. Addis Ababa: Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Population Census Commission. 2007. Available online: http://www.statsethiopia.gov.et/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Population-and-Housing-Census-2007-National_Statistical.pdf (accessed on 10 September 2024).

37. Central Statistical Agency (CSA). Population Projections for Ethiopia, Addis Ababa. Addis Ababa: Population Census Commission; 2017. pp. 2007-2037.

38. Kebede G, Bewket W. Variations in rainfall and extreme event indices in the wettest part of Ethiopia. SINET: Ethiopian Journal of Science. 2009; 32(2). doi: 10.4314/sinet.v32i2.68864

39. Korecha D, Sorteberg A. Construction of Homogeneous Rainfall Regimes for Ethiopia. International Journal of Climatology. 2013. Available online: https://malaria.w.uib.no/files/2014/06/DiribaPhD.pdf (accessed on 20 September 2024).

40. Qin Q, Zhang N, Nan P, et al. Geothermal area detection using Landsat ETM+ thermal infrared data and its mechanistic analysis—A case study in Tengchong, China. International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation. 2011; 13(4): 552-559. doi: 10.1016/j.jag.2011.02.005

41. Jiménez‐Muñoz JC, Sobrino JA. A generalized single‐channel method for retrieving land surface temperature from remote sensing data. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres. 2003; 108(D22). doi: 10.1029/2003jd003480

42. Lo CP, Quattrochi DA. Land-Use and Land-Cover Change, Urban Heat Island Phenomenon, and Health Implications. Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing. 2003; 69(9): 1053-1063. doi: 10.14358/pers.69.9.1053

43. Cheng X, Wei B, Chen G, et al. Influence of park size and its surrounding urban landscape patterns on the park cooling effect. Journal of Urban Planning and Development. 2015; 141(3): 4014002. doi: 10.1061/(ASCE)UP.1943-5444.0000256

44. Landsat Project Science Office. Landsat science data user’s handbook. Available online: https://www.usgs.gov/landsat-missions/landsat-data-user-handbooks (accessed on 1 September 2024).

45. Wang L, Hou H, Weng J. Ordinary least squares modelling of urban heat island intensity based on landscape composition and configuration: A comparative study among three megacities along the Yangtze River. Sustainable Cities and Society. 2020; 62: 102381. doi: 10.1016/j.scs.2020.102381

46. Ramachandran J, Lalitha R, Sivasubramanian K. Remote Sensing Based Land Surface Temperature Analysis in Diverse Environment of Lalgudi Block. International Journal of Environment and Climate Change. 2019: 142-149. doi: 10.9734/ijecc/2019/v9i330103

47. Balew A, Korme T. Monitoring land surface temperature in Bahir Dar city and its surrounding using Landsat images. The Egyptian Journal of Remote Sensing and Space Science. 2020; 23(3): 371-386. doi: 10.1016/j.ejrs.2020.02.001

48. Guha S, Govil H, Gill N, et al. A long-term seasonal analysis on the relationship between LST and NDBI using Landsat data. Quaternary International. 2021; 575-576: 249-258. doi: 10.1016/j.quaint.2020.06.041

49. Naeem S, Cao C, Qazi W, et al. Studying the Association between Green Space Characteristics and Land Surface Temperature for Sustainable Urban Environments: An Analysis of Beijing and Islamabad. ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information. 2018; 7(2): 38. doi: 10.3390/ijgi7020038

50. Kumari B, Tayyab M, Shahfahad, et al. Satellite-Driven Land Surface Temperature (LST) Using Landsat 5, 7 (TM/ETM+ SLC) and Landsat 8 (OLI/TIRS) Data and Its Association with Built-Up and Green Cover Over Urban Delhi, India. Remote Sensing in Earth Systems Sciences. 2018; 1(3-4): 63-78. doi: 10.1007/s41976-018-0004-2

51. Chander G, Markham B. Revised landsat-5 tm radiometric calibration procedures and postcalibration dynamic ranges. IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing. 2003; 41(11): 2674-2677. doi: 10.1109/tgrs.2003.818464

52. Sobrino JA, Jiménez-Muñoz JC, Paolini L. Land surface temperature retrieval from LANDSAT TM 5. Remote Sensing of Environment. 2004; 90(4): 434-440. doi: 10.1016/j.rse.2004.02.003

53. Effat H, Taha L, Mansour K. Change Detection of Land cover and Urban Heat Islands using Multi-Temporal Landsat Images, application in Tanta City, Egypt. Open Journal of Remote Sensing and Positioning. 2014; 1(2): 1-15. doi: 10.15764/rsp.2014.02001

54. Maheng D, Ducton I, Lauwaet D, et al. The Sensitivity of Urban Heat Island to Urban Green Space—A Model-Based Study of City of Colombo, Sri Lanka. Atmosphere. 2019; 10(3): 151. doi: 10.3390/atmos10030151

55. Abutaleb K, Ngie A, Darwish A, et al. Assessment of Urban Heat Island Using Remotely Sensed Imagery over Greater Cairo, Egypt. Advances in Remote Sensing. 2015; 04(01): 35-47. doi: 10.4236/ars.2015.41004

56. Pervaiz S, Shirazi AS, Khan FZ. Tree census of urban green space with special reference to Gora Cemetery of Lahore, Pakistan. International Journal of Biosciences (IJB). 2018; 13(01): 431-439. doi: 10.12692/ijb/13.1.431-439

57. Gandhi GM, Parthiban S, Thummalu N, et al. Ndvi: Vegetation Change Detection Using Remote Sensing and Gis—A Case Study of Vellore District. Procedia Computer Science. 2015; 57: 1199-1210. doi: 10.1016/j.procs.2015.07.415

58. Avdan U, Jovanovska G. Algorithm for Automated Mapping of Land Surface Temperature Using LANDSAT 8 Satellite Data. Journal of Sensors. 2016; 2016: 1-8. doi: 10.1155/2016/1480307

59. Moisa MB, Dejene IN, Merga BB, et al. Impacts of land use/land cover dynamics on land surface temperature using geospatial techniques in Anger River Sub-basin, Western Ethiopia. Environmental Earth Sciences. 2022; 81(3). doi: 10.1007/s12665-022-10221-2

60. Stemn E, Kumi-Boateng B. Modelling of land surface temperature changes as determinant of urban heat island and risk of heat-related conditions in the Wassa West Mining Area of Ghana. Modeling Earth Systems and Environment. 2020; 6(3): 1727-1740. doi: 10.1007/s40808-020-00786-x

61. Mallick J, Kant Y, Bharath BD. Estimation of land surface temperature over Delhi using Landsat-7 ETM+. The Journal of Indian Geophysical Union. 2008; 12(3): 131–140.

62. Huong NTL, Yao S, Fahad S. Assessing household livelihood vulnerability to climate change: The case of Northwest Vietnam. Human and Ecological Risk Assessment: An International Journal. 2018; 25(5): 1157-1175. doi: 10.1080/10807039.2018.1460801

63. Zare M, Drastig K, Zude-Sasse M. Tree Water Status in Apple Orchards Measured by Means of Land Surface Temperature and Vegetation Index (LST–NDVI) Trapezoidal Space Derived from Landsat 8 Satellite Images. Sustainability. 2019; 12(1): 70. doi: 10.3390/su12010070

64. Merga BB, Moisa MB, Negash DA, et al. Land surface temperature variation in response to landuse and land-cover dynamics: a case of Didessa River sub-basin in western Ethiopia. Earth System Science. 2022; 6: 803-815. doi: 10. 1007/s41748-022-00303-3

65. Moisa MB, Merga BB, Gemeda DO. Multiple indices-based assessment of agricultural drought: A case study in Gilgel Gibe Sub-basin, Southern Ethiopia. Theoretical and Applied Climatology. 2022; 148(1-2): 455-464. doi: 10.1007/s00704-022-03962-4

66. Wolteji BN, Bedhadha ST, Gebre SL, et al. Multiple Indices Based Agricultural Drought Assessment in the Rift Valley Region of Ethiopia. Environmental Challenges. 2022; 7: 100488. doi: 10.1016/j.envc.2022.100488

67. Alexander C. Normalised difference spectral indices and urban land cover as indicators of land surface temperature (LST). International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation. 2020; 86: 102013. doi: 10.1016/j.jag.2019.102013

68. Sarif MdO, Gupta RD. Modelling of trajectories in urban sprawl types and their dynamics (1988-2018): a case study of Prayagraj City (India). Arabian Journal of Geosciences. 2021; 14(14). doi: 10.1007/s12517-021-07573-7

69. Xu X, Qiu W, Li W, et al. Comparing satellite image and GIS data classified local climate zones to assess urban heat island: A case study of Guangzhou. Frontiers in Environmental Science. 2022; 10. doi: 10.3389/fenvs.2022.1029445

70. Xu C, Huang G, Zhang M. Comparative Analysis of the Seasonal Driving Factors of the Urban Heat Environment Using Machine Learning: Evidence from the Wuhan Urban Agglomeration, China, 2020. Atmosphere. 2024; 15(6): 671. doi: 10.3390/atmos15060671

71. Hu C, Zhang M, Huang G, et al. Tracking the Impact of the Land Cover Change on the Spatial-Temporal Distribution of the Thermal Comfort: Insights from the Qinhuai River Basin, China. Sustainable Cities and Society. 2024; 116. doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2024.105916

72. Zhang M, Yiğit İ, Adigüzel F, et al. Impact of Urban Surfaces on Microclimatic Conditions and Thermal Comfort in Burdur, Türkiye. Atmosphere. 2024; 15(11): 1375. doi: 10.3390/atmos15111375