Darker cars absorb more heat and make cities feel hotter

By Daniel Ofman,

Patrick Jarenwattananon

Published August 27, 2025 at 5:50 PM EDT

In urban environments, heat gets absorbed and released by the pavement, buildings and other objects. A new study says that an underestimated factor in urban warming is heat radiating from parked cars.

Daniel Ofman

Patrick Jarenwattananon

See stories by Patrick Jarenwattananon

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