The urban canyon model has been recurrently used as a basis for many solar access studies. However, its conception as endless structures disregards the effect of street intersections, despite being characteristic elements of urban fabrics. This paper aims to evaluate the impact of street discontinuities on solar access over building façades. The potential of crossings to increase the available radiation has been assessed through computer simulations in dense urban environments in a Mediterranean location. For the cases studied, results show that local effects of an intersection almost disappear beyond a specific distance for each aspect ratio, which can be helpful to determine the suitable level of detail for solar analyses at an urban fabric scale.

As global warming increases, understanding the vulnerability of urban areas to extreme heat becomes crucial. Social housing districts, due to their urban form and demographic composition, are identified as high-risk areas for heat stress. This study investigates the impact of trees on mitigating outdoor heat stress in social housing districts, focusing on the Mediterranean region, particularly the metropolitan area of Barcelona, Spain. Using mean radiant temperature (MRT) as a key parameter, simulations were conducted to assess the influence of trees on heat stress in two districts differing in building types: linear blocks versus towers. The results show that the absence of trees makes towers more vulnerable to heat stress, as they lack long-term shaded spaces, such as the corridors in the linear blocks. In contrast, when trees are considered, tree-induced shading significantly decreases MRT and shifts its distribution pattern so that both urban fabrics exhibit similar performances, achieving the same percentage of open space with moderate heat stress (22%). These findings underscore the importance of a performance-based design approach, emphasising the need to consider both urban form and tree cover for effective heat stress mitigation in social housing districts.

Balconies are widely recognized for enhancing urban livability, making them attractive elements to incorporate in building renovation projects. However, their impact on energy performance remains insufficiently studied, particularly in temperate climates, like the Mediterranean, where both heating and cooling demands must be considered. This article evaluates the energy impacts of integrating open balconies into housing retrofits on the space conditioning demand of dwellings through spatialized analysis at the urban block scale. Focusing on Barcelona’s Eixample district, a parametric Urban Building Energy Modeling (UBEM) was employed to assess how balcony design interacts with urban morphology (orientation, obstructions), building features (window-to-wall ratio, WWR), and balcony length. Results reveal a seasonal trade-off at the block scale: balconies increase heating demand (0.1–1.6 kWh/m²·yr) by reducing winter solar gain but decrease cooling demand (0.1–3.8 kWh/m²·yr) through summer shading. Net effects vary by unit position, with south-facing and moderately glazed dwellings benefiting the most. Deeper balconies (1.5–2 m) amplify both effects, while optimal depth depends on the window-to-wall ratio. Under future climates, retrofits combining insulation and balconies mitigate rising cooling demands more effectively than insulation alone, reducing block-level demand by up to 16%. Although balconies alone show modest energy savings at the block scale, they enhance localized thermal resilience. The study highlights the need for integrated retrofit strategies that balance thermal insulation with solar protection to address both current and future energy challenges while enhancing occupant well-being.

The correlation between air and surface temperatures is recurrently used as a descriptor of the urban climate within built environments. The aim of this paper is to explore the possibilities of time-lapse thermography to visualize this relationship in time and space. To this end, thermograms are colorized using a relative-to-air temperature scale, instead of the usual absolute one. This approach was tested for two deep urban canyons belonging to cities with different climates. Relative-to-air thermography has two main advantages: it facilitates comparisons between the thermal responses of urban scenes under different climates and makes convective energy exchanges more comprehensive.