Three key vital signs make up the "urban pulse" of a city
Summary
Researchers studied how cities grow and change over time using data from satellites and other sources. They found that city development happens in sharp, uneven bursts, cycles of busy and quiet periods, and different areas within a city change at different times and speeds.Key Facts
- Cities change in many ways including population, economy, infrastructure, environment, government, and culture.
- The study used data from NASA satellites to track new buildings, repairs, green spaces, and demolitions in six cities: Seattle, Shenzhen, Lagos, Mumbai, Dubai, and Mexico City.
- City growth happens in sudden spikes, not steady smooth progress.
- Growth follows cycles with phases of expansion, peak activity, then slowdown, but these cycles are different for each city.
- Different neighborhoods within the same city develop at different rates and times (asynchronously).
- The COVID-19 pandemic caused a major temporary slowdown in city activity worldwide.
- Dubai showed large, costly development spikes, while Shenzhen’s growth was more clustered and state-driven.
- Lagos had uneven, fragmented growth cycles with long quiet periods interrupted by bursts of construction.
Read the Full Article
This is a fact-based summary from The Actual News. Click below to read the complete story directly from the original source.