Energy News
TECH SPACE
Keeping cool with colours - Vienna museum paints asphalt to fight heat
Keeping cool with colours - Vienna museum paints asphalt to fight heat
By Blaise GAUQUELIN
Vienna (AFP) Aug 15, 2025

Equipped with an infrared thermometer, Austrian artist Jonas Griessler measures the sweltering heat in an inner courtyard in the centre of Vienna.

Thanks to his collective's art work covering the black asphalt with a multitude of bright colours, the ground temperature has dropped from 31C to 20C.

Initiated by the museum showing the private collection of late Austrian billionaire Heidi Horten, the project combines creativity, science and urban planning as Europe suffocates under the latest heatwave.

"The childish tones reflect the lightness and inconsistency with which our society addresses this issue" of climate change, Griessler, 25, an artist with the Holla Hoop collective, told AFP.

With more intense, longer and more frequent heatwaves a direct consequence of climate change according to scientists, European cities are trying to change their urban planning.

Many have been opting for more greenery and also lighter paint that reflects solar rays, trying to avoid dark material, which retains heat.

"We wanted to slightly improve the quality" of visitors' stays and "promote awareness," said curator Veronique Abpurg, happy that tourists are "attracted by this visually pleasing palette".

While each coloured surface represents a year, they each contain small dots. Each dot represents a billion tons of CO2 emissions, and the number of dots on each surface are equivalent to the worldwide emissions of that year.

This way one can visualise the increase in emissions due to human activity between 1960 and 2000.

"The blocks gradually fill up," lamented the artist, whose background is in graffiti art.

"It starts with nine dots, and at the end, there are three times more," he said.

"It's a piece of the mosaic for adapting to urban heatwaves," said Hans-Peter Hutter, an environmental health specialist at the Medical University of Vienna, who supports the initiative.

A lower temperature on the asphalt means that buildings surrounding the courtyard will need less cooling, reducing air conditioning usage, Hutter said.

"We need to communicate better on the subject (of climate change) so that people don't lose hope" and see adaptation measures as a fun activity, he added.

Related Links
Space Technology News - Applications and Research

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
TECH SPACE
Breakthrough smart plastic: Self-healing, shape-shifting, and stronger than steel
College Station, TX (SPX) Aug 13, 2025
Aerospace engineering and materials science researchers at Texas A and M University have uncovered new properties of an ultra-durable, recyclable, smart plastic - paving the way for transformative applications in the defense, aerospace and automotive industries. The breakthrough - funded by the U.S. Department of Defense and published in Macromolecules and the Journal of Composite Materials - was led by Dr. Mohammad Naraghi, director of the Nanostructured Materials Lab and professor of aerospace e ... read more

TECH SPACE
India celebrates clean energy milestone but coal still king

Iraq electricity gradually back after nationwide outage

Parisians hot under the collar over A/C in apartments

Major climate-GDP study under review after facing challenge

TECH SPACE
Is Fusion Energy Becoming the Space Race of This Century

German firm gives 'second life' to used EV batteries

Researchers use electrochemistry to boost nuclear fusion rates

Finding the shadows in a fusion system faster with AI

TECH SPACE
'Let's go fly a kite': Capturing wind for clean energy in Ireland

Germany, wind power groups seek to cut China reliance

Drone swarm explores turbulent airflows near wind turbines

Dogs on the trail of South Africa's endangered tortoises

TECH SPACE
SolarDaily Exclusive: One Small Contractor Forces CPUC to Blink on 150% Storage Rule

Neighbour to neighbour solar trading lifts returns and eases strain on the grid

Macquarie licenses precision silver recovery tech for solar panel recycling

Dual-level hybrid storage design boosts solar efficiency and reduces costs

TECH SPACE
New nuclear program will boost UK energy security through sustainable graphite innovation

MIT study sheds light on graphite's lifespan in nuclear reactors

PNNL to assess GNF high burnup fuel rods after reactor service

Diatoms shown to absorb and store uranium inside cells

TECH SPACE
Prototype system transforms urine into solar powered fertilizer and clean water

Paper: Decarbonize agriculture by expanding policies aimed at low-carbon biofuels

Electron beam recycling turns heat resistant plastics into valuable gases

Electron beam method converts Teflon waste into reusable gases

TECH SPACE
Greta Thunberg, activists block Norway oil refinery

Clean hydrogen's iridium problem? Solved in an afternoon

Court halts TotalEnergies South African oil exploration

German gas drive fuels fears of climate backsliding

TECH SPACE
Promise less, act more: Host Brazil's climate summit vow

Over half of Europe and Mediterranean basin hit by drought since April

Brazil COP30 climate summit lodging too pricey for some nations

Hungarians protest with camels to raise alarm over drought

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.