A Google Earth Engine–Based Framework for Dynamic Urban Heat Island Analysis Using Landsat 8/9 (2015–2025): Case Study of Leverkusen, Germany

Urban Heat Island (UHI) effects are becoming more severe as cities expand rapidly and climate change drives temperatures higher. This study introduces a dynamic, threshold-based approach for tracking annual UHI patterns using Landsat 8 and 9 imagery from 2015 to 2025. Land Surface Temperature (LST) is estimated with a single-channel algorithm, while surface emissivity is calculated using an NDVI-based method. To identify UHI zones, the study applies a dynamic threshold defined as the annual mean LST plus 0.5 times the standard deviation. By combining spatial and temporal analysis with interactive visualization, the framework offers a practical tool for monitoring urban heat trends and supporting climate adaptation, sustainable urban planning, and evidence-based decision-making.