Heat Futures Laboratory
Advancing human-centered solutions for living in a hotter world.
Sensing heat, shaping futures
The Heat Futures Lab helps people and cities adapt to extreme heat
Using human-centric sensing and modeling, the lab studies how heat is experienced — from the pores in skin that expel sweat to the urban environment people inhabit — to help communities make smarter decisions about health, clothing, infrastructure and daily life in a warming world.
This lab brings together expertise in atmospheric sciences, thermal engineering, human health and material science to create something entirely new — an innovative approach to one of the most pressing challenges of our time.
The Heat Futures Lab is embedded in the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory.
Who we are
Konrad Rykaczewski
Associate Professor
School for Engineering of Matter, Transport and Energy
Our initiatives
Read about some of the work happening across the Heat Futures Laboratory.
HeatReadyTM
Enabling cities, neighborhoods and schools to identify, prepare for, mitigate, track and respond to the negative impacts of extreme heat using community-specific strategies that support residents.
Human-centric models and sensors
Developing sensing and modeling tools to evaluate how behaviors, clothing, policy interventions and infrastructure can affect heat stress while protecting human health.
Global Center for Heat Adaptation
Use-inspired research developing real-world solutions to strengthen society’s ability to manage and adapt to extreme heat. This center is supported by NSF and ASU.
Heat Futures news
Read the latest stories about extreme heat and its impacts.
Heat Futures Laboratory
in the news
Extreme heat: Arizona to Australia
The climate crisis isn’t a distant threat: it’s already here, and it’s deadly. Extreme heat kills more Americans every year than hurricanes and wildfires combined.
Read on azpbs.orgSweating test dummy being used in Arizona to determine how heat impacts the human body
At Arizona State University, there’s a team welcoming summer’s surging temperatures. Researchers are using a sweating test dummy to study how heat impacts the human body.
Read on www.cbsnews.com