On a warm, sunny afternoon Anthony Joyce navigates several neighborhoods on the north end of Missoula and calls out instructions to driver Dave Harmon.
A large antennae-shaped sensor on the car tracks second-by-second temperature and humidity readings. Joyce and Harmon are part of 12 teams of volunteers driving preset routes across the city.
Harmon says he was excited to spend the day collecting this data.
"There's a lot of people, it's like, they don't want to go to meetings, they don't want to do this and that, but they can do something with their hands," Harmon says. "They can plant a tree. They could do a study like this and just see some results."
Volunteers go out three different times over the course of a day to collect data that will ultimately create a county-wide heat map.
"It's crucial that we find where those hot spots are, find where those heat islands are throughout our community, so that we can target resources and information to those who need it most," says Alli Kane with Missoula County's Climate Action program.
That term – heat island – refers to pockets in urban areas that are significantly hotter because heat gets trapped there. Places with more pavement, less vegetation, or more large buildings can all create heat islands.
According to the county’s climate readiness plan, Missoula County’s average annual temperature is projected to increase by four to five degrees by 2050. And the average number of summer days over 90 degrees could increase by up to 20 days.
Kane teamed up with city of Missoula, and nonprofit Climate Smart Missoula to coordinate this mapping project.
"We know that it's getting hotter in Missoula," Susan Teitelman with Climate Smart Missoula says. "And predictions show that heat trends will continue. It will get hotter. Last year we had three solid weeks of temperatures over 90 degrees."
The county estimates temperatures will increase about five degrees by 2050.
She hopes this heat map will help her prioritize where to plant trees, or where cooling centers should go during hot summer months.
The final map is expected to be published by the end of September. Teitelman says it will be posted online and the raw data will also be available for future research use.
