Tokyo experiments with water sprinklers to keep streets cool for Olympics
A woman uses a portable fan to cool herself in Tokyo on July 24, 2018, as Japan suffers from a heatwave. (Photo: AFP/Martin Bureau)
TOKYO: Authorities in Tokyo conducted tests using water sprinklers on its streets on Monday (Aug 13) to see if it could effectively reduce high temperatures expected during the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
The Games, which will take place from Jul 24 to Aug 9, will be held when temperatures can hit 37 degrees Celsius, with humidity climbing to more than 80 per cent.
The experiment was conducted along a pedestrian walkway where race walking events will take place, reported Kyodo News.
Results showed that temperatures on the street surface was 5 degrees Celsius cooler than its surrounding air temperature after sprinkling water.
Authorities conducted the experiment by using hoses with holes - commonly used for farming, at two different timings from 4am and 7am.
When the experiment started at 4am, results showed that the surface temperatures of some areas was 5 degrees Celsius lower than the air temperature.
Despite the air temperature going over 30 degrees Celsius, areas that were wet recorded temperatures between 27 and 29 degrees Celsius.
For areas which had no water sprinkled on, the surface temperature went above 30 degrees Celsius, said the report.
The experiment however was conducted during cloudy weather, said an official.
Tokyo also plans to bring in mist showers and special pavements to cool down road surface temperatures.
Japan experienced an "unprecedented" heatwave last month, which killed at least 130 people and hospitalised nearly 71,000 others.
The heatwave toppled temperature records across the country, with Kumagaya in Saitama outside Tokyo setting a new nationwide record with temperatures hitting 41.1 degrees Celsius.
