Algorithms implementation for land surface temperature estimation based on Landsat data as an indicator of urban heat island

This paper presents a proposal for estimating land surface temperature (LST) for the metropolitan area of Rio de Janeiro (MARJ), Brazil, based on Landsat 5 and 7 data from 1984 to 2010. The main objective is to emphasize the need for greater accuracy in urban heat island studies, overlooking a series of essential steps to retrieve LST as close as possible to the true, including cloud masking techniques, atmospheric correction and surface emissivity.