The study aims to assess the ground thermal conditions in Greater Manchester within the context of an ongoing multidisciplinary research project Adaptation Strategies to Climate Change in the Urban Environment (ASCCUE). We will use a novel modelling approach developed by Whitford et al. (2001) to calculate minimum and maximum surface temperatures for a hot summers day. Thermal data will allow us to validate our climate modelling approach with measured data and as an input into the human comfort study. Radiant surface temperatures will be estimated from data obtained with the Airborne Thematic Mapper (ATM). A north-south transect across Greater Manchester has been chosen for this purpose that includes a cross-section of urban morphology types. Thermal data will be input into a geographical information system to estimate mean radiant surface temperatures for morphology types and relate thermal conditions to their surface cover. Measured radiant temperatures will then be compared with the calculated surface temperatures to explore the predictive ability of the model. If systematic errors are detected, correction factors will be incorporated into our models, and used in later calculations of human comfort. We anticipate a range of downstream applications in particular within the frame of the Integrating Framework of Building Knowledge for a Changing Climate (BKCC).