Evaluating the Dynamics of Land Use and Land Cover Changes in Relation to the Land Surface Temperature of Hyderabad City

Abstract

Land Surface Temperature (LST) is a critical indicator of urban thermal comfort and heat stress. This study investigates the relationship between land use/land cover (LULC) changes and LST dynamics in Hyderabad City, India, over a 30-year period (1989–2019) using decadal Landsat imagery. The satellite data were pre-processed through radiometric and atmospheric correction, and classified into four LULC classes-built-up, barren land, vegetation, and water bodies-using the Support Vector Machine (SVM) algorithm. LST was retrieved using mono-window algorithms, while the Contribution Index (CI) was employed to quantify the thermal impact of each LULC class. Results reveal a significant expansion of built-up areas from 35.8% to 56.5%, alongside a decline in barren land (42.7% to 33.4%), vegetation (19.4% to 8.2%), and water bodies (2.1% to 2.0%). The warming effect of barren land decreased (CI from 0.58 to 0.22), while the cooling influence of vegetation (CI from -0.42 to -0.06) and water bodies (CI from -0.14 to -0.10) also weakened over time. Declining values of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) indicate reductions in vegetation health and water extent. Simultaneously, rising Normalized Difference Built-up Index (NDBI) and Normalized Difference Bareness Index (NDBaI) reflect increasing urbanization and land conversion. These findings highlight the shifting surface energy balance driven by LULC changes and provide critical insights for sustainable urban planning and climate adaptation strategies.