Health impacts of ultraviolet radiation in urban ecosystems: a review

Numerous studies report that ultraviolet (UV) radiation is harmful to living organisms and detrimental to human health. Growing concerns regarding the increased levels of UV-B radiation that reach the earth''s surface have led to the development of ground and space-based measurement programs that provide long-term data records of these UV radiation levels. Further study is needed in the measurement, modeling, and effects of UV radiation, especially in determining how increased UV-B interacts with other climate stressors, such as drought, increased temperatures, and CO2. The chapters of this book describe the research conducted across the globe over the past three decades, in the areas of: (1) current and predicted levels of UV radiation and the associated impact on ecosystems and human health, as well as economic and social implications; (2) new developments in UV instrumentation, advances in calibration (ground-based and satellite-based), measurement methods, modeling efforts, and their applications; and, (3) the effect of global climate change on UV radiation.