University of San Diego Climate Collaborative — San Diego Region
Map opacity 100%
UC San Diego — Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Select variables and click Build Composite Risk Map
Compare mode: click a second tract to compare with —.
— click tracts to explore
Generating PDF\u2026

Download Data

File Format
Columns
Read the dictionary first. Column headers in the data file are raw variable keys (EP_NOINT, shututility_prev); <stem>_data_dictionary.csv gives each one a plain-English label, its units, whether a higher value means more or less risk, and a link to the original source. It also records the heat mode, scenario and switched-on variables the index columns were built from. GeoJSON downloads carry the same information at metadata. Watch the direction: adaptive_score is stored capacity-side (100 = most capacity, least risk), the opposite of exposure_score and sensitivity_score.
Raw source values are included, except where a source's terms bar redistribution: Healthy Places Index variables (tree canopy, park access, income, education, life expectancy, pollution, &c.) are non-commercial, and the CalHeatScore heat-hospitalization variables have no published license. Both stay on the map and are listed in the dictionary with in_download = no and a note on where to request them. Percentile ranks (0–100) are always computed against all San Diego County tracts, even when you export a single jurisdiction. Every row carries citation, license (CC BY 4.0) and sources_url columns; the full source table is in the User Guide.
Scope
Tracts whose centroid falls inside a selected jurisdiction are included.

Census Tract Comparison

click any parcel for category
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Compare ScenariosLeft: full heat risk · Right: change in heat exposure

How to read this

Left map — the full heat risk. How hot it gets, who is vulnerable, and how well they can cope, combined into one score. Darker red means higher risk.
Right map — the change. How heat exposure shifts from the left scenario to the right one. Blue means less exposed, red means more exposed, white means little change.
cooler · less exposedhotter · more exposed

Only heat exposure responds to the climate scenario. Who is vulnerable and their ability to cope stay at today's levels, so the right map isolates the warming signal. The scale is percentile points — a tract's countywide exposure rank, 0 to 100.

Welcome to the San Diego Heat Risk Explorer

Quick start

  1. Defaults are already selected — click Build Composite Risk Map.
  2. Click any tract to see its risk score and dominant driver.
  3. Under Map Layer, switch to Dominant Driver to see what drives risk countywide.

Or use the left panel to customize your map. Here’s what each section does:

  • Heat Exposure — pick one heat hazard to map (daytime, nighttime, humid heat, or surface temperature). They affect different places, so you compare them one at a time.
  • Population Sensitivity / Adaptive Capacity — two groups of factors that shape heat risk. Turn any on or off to include them in your map.
  • Build Composite Risk Map — combines the factors you picked into a single risk score for every census tract.
  • Map Layer — switch between the combined risk score, each group on its own, or any single factor.
  • Jurisdictions — show city, unincorporated-county, or tribal-land boundaries on the map.
  • Climate Scenario — see how risk shifts under future warming, for the year 2050 or 2080.
  • Export — save the current map as a PDF or download the data.
  • Feedback — email us about anything that looks wrong or missing. Also at the bottom of the sidebar.

© 2026 Southern California Extreme Heat Research Hub & San Diego Regional Climate Collaborative. Code MIT; data & content CC BY 4.0, each source under its own terms.

User Guide