New concepts in topoclimatology

Many researchers tried to categorize climatology into three or four subdivisions, including topoclimatology. The aim of this article is to show new concepts in this branch of climatology. It first defines topoclimatology as standing between microclimatology and mesoclimatology; it stresses the importance of topoclimatic research in avoiding environmental hazards, as for instance from mines, atomic reactors, electric power stations, etc., which belong neither to microclimatology nor to mesoclimatology. Then the article explains how urban climatology is also part of topoclimatology. It emphasizes the need to integrate topoclimatology into planning, thus improving man's quality of life. In order to attain these aims there must be a new approach to the training of topoclimatic researchers. They must have the tools to apply their knowledge, and thus the planner will receive essential supplementation to a field largely ignored until now.