Site Analysis Glossary

Site analysis - is a preliminary phase of architectural and urban design processes

dedicated to the study of the climatic, geographical, historical, legal, and
infrastructural context of a specific site. (Wikipedia)
Physiography - The physical features of geography (site).
Hydrology - Water movement on the site.
Sensory Stimuli - Anything that stimulates the senses.
Evapotranspiration - Vegetation pulling water up from the ground and
evaporating it through its leaves, thus cooling the surrounding air.
Prerequisite - Required beforehand.
Geology - the science that deals with the earth's physical structure and substance,
its history, and the processes that act on it.
Culture- culture is the background of the people living in the area.
Vegetation- plants considered collectively, especially those found in a particular
area or habitat.
Site - the position or location of a town, building, etc., especially as to its
environment:
Soil - the upper layer of earth in which plants grow, a black or dark brown
material typically consisting of a mixture of organic remains, clay, and rock
particles.
Wildlife- s - living things and especially mammals, birds, and fishes that are
neither human nor domesticated.
Climate- the weather conditions prevailing in an area in general or over a long
period.
Pedestrian- meaning someone who travels on foot.
Historic factors- is a concept or category that defines the intimate relationships
between historical events / issues.
Density- the state or quality of being dense; compactness; closely set or crowded
condition.
Access - ability to enter/exit, approach, or pass to and from a place .
Size- the relative extent of something; a thing's overall dimensions or magnitude;
how big something is.
Neighborhood Context - a function of numerous variables selected from physical,
operational, socio-economic, environmental, and institutional points of views.
Zoning - refers to municipal or local laws or regulations that dictate how real
property can and cannot be used in certain geographic areas.
Natural factor- are the background of the environmental elements in a location.
Micro climate- climatic aspects of the specific site or areas on the site
Air Flow- is the movement of air.
Wind - a natural movement of air of any velocity especially : the earth's air or the
gas surrounding a planet in natural motion horizontally.
Energy Efficient Design- are designed to provide a significant reduction of the
energy need for heating and cooling, independently of the energy and of the
equipment’s that will be chosen to heat or cool the building.
five basic principles of air movement: velocity, direction, pressure, density and
the venturi effect.
Velocity - Velocity is a measure of how fast something moves in a particular
direction.
Venturi effect - when the air flow is channeled and restricted, the pressure rises
and the velocity increases
Cross ventilation is created by a positive pressure being built up on the windward
side of a structure and a negative pressure being created on the leeward side.
Convection - when heat is transferred through a gas or liquid by the hotter
material moving into a cooler area. In meteorology, it is the transfer of heat and
other atmospheric properties by the movement of masses of air, particularly in an
upward direction.
Sun Path- sometimes also called day arc, refers to the daily and seasonal arc-like
path that the Sun appears to follow across the sky as the Earth rotates and orbits
the Sun.

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