Geographia Polonica (2021) vol. 94, iss. 2

The evaluation of biothermal conditions for various forms of climatic therapy based on UTCI adjusted for activity

Katarzyna Lindner-Cendrowska, Peter Bröde

Geographia Polonica (2021) vol. 94, iss. 2, pp. 167-182 | Full text
doi: https://doi.org/10.7163/GPol.0199

Abstract

The objective of this study was to assess biothermal conditions in the selected Polish health resorts for specific forms of climatic therapy. We calculated Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) for ten-year period (2008-2017) and then added adjustment terms, taking into account changes in metabolic rates during various physical activities from resting to vigorous exercise. The adjusted UTCI values increased with rising activity, implying that warmer parts of the year were unsuitable for intensive forms of climatotherapy. These results demonstratethat the UTCI adjustment procedure provides well-balanced assessments of bioclimatic conditions for the purpose of climatic treatment considering the level of activity.

Keywords: UTCI, thermal comfort, metabolic heat production, climatic therapy, health resorts

Katarzyna Lindner-Cendrowska [klindner@twarda.pan.pl], Instytut Geografii i Przestrzennego Zagospodarowania im. S. Leszczyckiego PAN
Peter Bröde [broede@ifado.de], Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at TU Dortmund (IfADo) Ardeystrasse 67, 44139 Dortmund: Germany