Geometry, sunlight
and the solar year.
Analytical shading, solar trajectories and the consequences of orientation. From instantaneous exposure to monthly and seasonal patterns.
Explore the programme →Research
Environmental physics
of built spaces.
We develop physically explicit studies of sunlight and spatial geometry. Two connected programmes connect analytical models with reproducible numerical investigations.
Scientific direction
One physical system.
Several scales of inquiry.
Geometry, sunlight
The sky as a
radiative boundary.
Diffuse sky access, radiative view factors and the interaction of direct and diffuse light in enclosed outdoor spaces.
Explore the programme →Research questions
What changes when
the sky changes?
From position to duration
Solar geometry studies how a single shadow calculation becomes a changing exposure pattern over a day, a season and a year.
From a ray to a hemisphere
Radiative environments examines the sky as an extended source. Direct and diffuse components interact with courtyard shape in different ways.
From outputs to evidence
Each report specifies its physical assumptions, tests numerical agreement and publishes the source and data needed to inspect its conclusions.
Publications
Read the research.
Direct–diffuse trade-offs in courtyard solar access
A mixture analysis identifies where winter transmission rankings reverse and separates summer rejection from winter admission.
Interactive model →Courtyard sky view and diffuse light
An area-averaged sky-access analysis compares rectangular openings using closed-form view factors and two numerical integral formulations.
Interactive model →Seasonal solar exposure across courtyard geometries
A full solar-year analysis examines latitude, orientation, wall height and plan proportions through monthly and seasonal transmission.
Interactive model →Courtyard geometry and direct sunlight
The foundational analytical study isolates direct sunlit floor area at specified solar elevations and azimuths, with an interactive model.
Interactive model →Leadership
Direction and accountability.
The programmes are directed by Osama Khaled, Scientific Research Lead, working with the research team across methods, modelling, verification and publication.
Explore the science
Interactive research models.
Study 01
Courtyard geometry & direct sunlight
How proportions, wall height and sun direction shape the sunlit floor at a particular moment.
Study 02
Seasonal solar exposure
How orientation and latitude change sunlight across the months, winter and summer.
Study 03
Sky view & diffuse light
How the sky reaches different points on a courtyard floor—and how those values compare with its area average.
Study 04
Direct–diffuse trade-offs
How changing the balance between direct and diffuse light can reverse a comparison between courtyard shapes.