The document discusses how to analyze climate and site conditions to inform building design. It covers: - Conducting site analyses to understand microclimate, temperature, humidity, solar radiation, wind, and precipitation. - Using a sun path diagram to determine the sun's hourly and seasonal position to understand shading and solar angles. - Developing initial design strategies based on climate factors like latitude, altitude, land-water relationships, prevailing winds, and the sun path diagram.

1. Relationship of Design Site
and Climate
• Site analyses: Climate elements, Micro climate, Climate Factors.
• Sun path diagram: hoe to read.
• Strategy: initial design strategies based on sun path diagram.
CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

2. SITE
LOCATION &
SIZE
NEIGHBOUH
OOD
CONTEXT
ZONING
GEOLOGYSOIL
HYDROL
OGY
UTILITIES
CLIMATIC
FACTORS
1. Site Analyses
• An understanding of the site
and its environment is an
integral part of a building
program and is a prerequisite
for good design.
• The building location on the
site is most advantageous
when the building site is
revealed by a thorough site
analysis.
• A site analysis is the gateway
to energy conscious design
and environmental
responsive architecture.
CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

3. • The secret of using the site analysis is to design a good relationship between
the building and the site itself.
• The building design should be in harmony with those beneficial site conditions
and strive to save, reinforce, amplify, and improve on what is existing.
ELEMENTS OF CLIMATE
• The most important elements of climate and weather parameters that affect
human comfort and are relevant to building design are:
• Ambient Temperature
• Humidity
• Solar Radiation
• Wind
• Precipitation
CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

4. Micro climate
• Each specific site has its own unique climatic characteristics that need to be
analyzed. The climatic aspects of the specific site or areas on the site are called the
microclimate.
• The specific characteristics of the site are analyzed only after one has a good
understanding of the macroclimate and general climatic characteristics which give an
overview of the climate for your region.
CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

5. Climate Factors- Concerning site
1. Latitude
2. Altitude
3. Land Water relationship
4. Terrain – Mountain Barriers
5. Ocean Currents
6. Prevailing winds
• Season based Solar
Radiation
• Site Context
• Climatic zone
• Sun path diagram
• Prevailing winds
• Vegetation
• Shadow Pattern
• Building Heights
• Humidity
• precipitation
CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES
Understanding climate with respect to design site

6. 1. Latitude –
• Distance north or south of the -
Latitude impacts EVERY PLACE on the
Earth
• As latitude increases, there is a
decrease of solar radiation.
2. Altitude –
• Height above sea level.
• As elevation increases atmospheric
pressure decreases. (Air becomes thin)
• In mountain areas, there are major
climatic differences from the bottom to
the top.
• As air rises, it loses the ability to hold
heat.
• It gets approx 3 F colder for every 1000
ft. you go up.
• As Altitude increases, there is a
decreases in temperature.
CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

7. 3. Land-Water Relationship-
• A large body of water tends to cause a
mild or moderate climate change
• A body of water heats up and cools
down slower than a land mass.
• In Summer Water surface remains
cooler than land surface during
daytime as it warms slower. And at
night the effect may reverse.
• Wind assumes the temp. of the
surface it passes over and carries that
temp. with it.
4. Terrain & Mountain Barriers –
• Cause different climates on opposite
sides of mountain.
• Moisture carrying winds must rise to
get over mountains. Air cools as it
rises, losing ability to hold water
causing rain on the windward side.
• This leaves no moisture for the
leeward side creating a desert.
CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

8. • Ability of surface heating/cooling is different for terrains.
• The micro climate of Places at different terrain has varying impacts.
CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

9. 5. Ocean Currents –
• They assume the temperature of the
water that they pass over and carry
that temperature. Wind passing over
the current must pass near the land
mass to have an impact.
Sea Breeze-
• A sea breeze is a gentle wind that
develops over bodies of
water near land due to differences in air
pressure created by their different heat
capacity.
• A land breeze is the reverse effect,
caused by land cooling more quickly
than water in the evening.
CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

10. 6. Prevailing Winds-
• As the Earth does continue to rotate at a constant rate,
and the winds do continue, the transfer of momentum
between Earth/atmosphere/Earth must be in balance
• The atmosphere is rotating in the same direction as the
Earth but westerly winds move faster and easterly winds
move slower than the Earth's surface.
Winds that blow most often in different parts of the Earth.
• Wind blows because:
1. Air over warm land rises
2. Cooler air moves in from surrounding areas to replace
rising air
3. The cool air is heated and process repeats.
Various Type of Winds
-Surface Winds
-Lake Land Breeze
-Mountain winds
-Sea Breeze
-Land Breeze
Prevailing Wind Diagram for, Mumbai
CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

11. SUN PATH diagram study
Sun path refers to apparent significant seasonal & hourly positional changes of the
sun as the earth rotates, and orbit around the sun
Sun path diagram as the name suggest is something that is used to determine the
location of sun, in the sky, at any point of time during the day through out the year.
What is the method to read the altitude and azimuth angle from the sun path
diagram ?
• Select the chart of the correct Latitude.
• Select the date line.
• Select the hour line and mark its intersection with the date line.
• Read off from the concentric circles the altitude angle.
• Lay a straight edge from the center of the chart through the marked time point
to the perimeter scale and read off the azimuth angle.
CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

12. CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

14. CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

15. Sun path for different Latitudes

16. JAN FAB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP
5°
OCT NOV DEC
10°
15°
20°
25°
30°
35°
40°
17°
21°
24°
27° 27° 26° 26°
25°
23°
20°
17°
30°
34°
36° 36°
33°
30° 30°
32° 32°
Months
Temperature°c
Maximum Temperature
Minimum Temperature
50°
60°
34°
32°
Mumbai Climatic Data Analyses-1

17. Mumbai Climatic Data Analyses-2

18. Design strategy as per Solar angle
• Zoning of activities
• Built form
• Orientation

19. Exercise: analyses and Design approach
Based on following Data Stage-1
• Basic climatic data
• Season based solar radiation
• Sun path diagram
• Prevailing winds
• Site context
• Vegetation
• Topography
• Building height & shadow patterns
Design approach Stage-2
• Zoning of activities
• Built form
• Orientation
Passive Design approach Stage-3
• Material
• Openings
• Landscape features
• Other Details
CLIMATE & SITE ANALYSES

20. Thank you