Spatial mismatches between nighttime light intensity and building morphology in Shanghai, China

China's rapid urbanization is not only the expansion of urban land, but also the three-dimensional expansion of buildings, which are physical expansion of the city. However, whether urban social and economic activities and urban vitality match the physical expansion of cities is still unclear. Taking Shanghai as an example, we acquired the high-resolution (130 m) nighttime light (NTL) data to quantify urban vitality. We further calculated building metrics to measure spatial pattern of buildings. We adopted the spatial autocorrelation analysis to investigate the spatial (mis)matches between the urban vitality and the building morphology. We identified 5 types of typical mismatched areas in Shanghai. Areas with Low-NTL but High-density buildings mainly are old communities, resettlement communities and large industrial parks. Areas with High-NTL but Low-density buildings mainly are new urban development zones and sub-centers. We conclude that the degradation of quality of living environment in urban center areas hinders the promotion of local vitality where urban renewal is needed. In suburbs, strengthening the construction of public service infrastructure is the key to stimulating urban vitality.

Automated summary

China's rapid urbanization has led to the expansion of urban land and buildings, but it is unclear whether the physical expansion matches the social and economic activities and vitality of cities. Using Shanghai as an example, this study quantifies urban vitality using nighttime light data and analyzes the spatial correlation between vitality and building morphology. The findings reveal mismatched areas in Shanghai, such as old and resettlement communities with low nighttime light but high building density, and new urban development zones with high nighttime light but low building density. The study concludes that the deterioration of living environment in urban centers hinders local vitality, while infrastructure development in suburbs is crucial for stimulating urban vitality.