Mirificus project shows up to 4 °C cooling in Rome and Florence

The Mirificus research programme – Monitoraggio degli interventi di Riforestazione per l’Isola di Calore Urbana tramite i Satelliti – has used satellite data and a WebGIS platform to simulate targeted urban‑heat mitigation measures in two Italian districts: Settecamini in Rome and Mercafir/Piazza Artom in Florence. Introducing reflective or low‑heat pavements, expanding green spaces and planting new trees lowered surface temperatures by more than 4 °C during the hottest part of the day (09:00‑15:00) and sustained a 2 °C‑2.2 °C reduction over the full day.

The study, coordinated by the National Research Council’s CNR‑IBE and Italy’s ISPRA with support from the Italian Space Agency, also analysed the “climatic DNA” of neighborhoods, finding that compact mid‑rise blocks can reach 44.6 °C while urban forests can keep temperatures near 35.9 °C – a natural drop of almost 9 °C. In some industrial zones of Rome, simulated peaks rose to 57.2 °C. Historical records from 2013‑2023 show that most Italian provincial capitals regularly exceed 40 °C in summer, with Milan, Turin, Naples, Bologna and Cagliari among the hottest.

The platform now allows every municipality to view temperature, land‑use and green‑area data, helping officials plan tree‑planting, soil‑restoration and depavement projects to improve public health, reduce climate‑change impacts and increase urban resilience.