Field Study on the Microclimate of Public Spaces in Traditional Residential Areas in a Severe Cold Region of China

As residential environment science advances, the environmental quality of outdoor microclimates has aroused increasing attention of scholars majoring in urban climate and built environments. Taking the microclimate of a traditional residential area in a severe cold city as the study object, this study explored the influence of spatial geometry factors on the microclimate of streets and courtyards by field measurements, then compared the differences in microclimate of distinct public spaces. The results are as follows. (1) The temperature of a NE-SW (Northeast-Southwest) oriented street was higher than that of a NW-SE (Northwest-Southeast) oriented street in both summer and winter, with an average temperature difference of 0.7–1.4 °C. The wind speeds in the latter street were slower, and the difference in average wind speed was 0.2 m/s. (2) In the street with a higher green coverage ratio, the temperature was much lower, a difference that was more obvious in summer. The difference in mean temperature was up to 1.2 °C. The difference in wind speed between the two streets was not obvious in winter, whereas the wind speed in summer was significantly lower for the street with a higher green coverage ratio, and the difference in average wind speed was 0.7 m/s. (3) The courtyards with higher SVF (sky view factor) had higher wind speeds in winter and summer, and the courtyards with larger SVF values had higher temperatures in summer, with an average temperature difference of 0.4 °C. (4) When the spaces had the same SVF values and green coverage ratios, the temperature of the street and courtyard were very similar, in both winter and summer. The wind speed of the street was significantly higher than the courtyard in summer, and the wind speed difference was 0.4 m/s.