Open Urban Climate Observatory Berlin for Environmental Research and Applications

Dr. Fred Meier, Technical University of Berlin, Dr. Marco Otto, Technical University of Berlin, Prof. Dr. Henning Rust, Free University of Berlin.

Berlin is now one of the most densely populated cities in the EU. With urban growth, negative climate effects that affect the health of the city's population are increasing and exacerbated by the climate crisis. To better capture spatially differentiated urban climatic variables (such as air temperature and heavy rain), the project implements weather observations using the Citizen Science concept into an existing scientific measurement network, the Urban Climate Observatory Berlin (UCO Berlin). The measurement stations used for this purpose (MESSI) have been specifically developed and tested at the Free University of Berlin in cooperation with the Technical University of Berlin for use in Citizen Science projects. The 100 MESSI stations will be set up and maintained by city residents, especially gardeners. The data collected will be jointly evaluated and published using a co-creation approach to address specific scientific questions. The collected atmospheric data will subsequently be freely available through the open UCO Berlin.