With the effects of climate change intensifying, cities need new resources to combat extreme heat. Google has released a new Heat Resilience tool, which leverages machine-learning algorithms to analyze how buildings, trees, and other factors affect land heat absorption. It also incorporates social vulnerability indicators, such as income statistics, to identify areas most in need of heat relief.

By using this model-based tool, officials can project how changes like increased tree cover or cool roofs would impact average summer land surface temperatures. This capability allows cities to develop more effective strategies for mitigating extreme heat and improving resilience.