A systematic review on urban heat island study in Malaysia: trends, impact, current status, and future pathways

Urban heat islands (UHIs) have become an important ecological and social challenge, particularly in rapidly developing Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia. The ecological and social impacts of UHIs have grown because of increasing urban growth and infrastructural expansion, which often lack integrated heat mitigation strategies. This systematic review suggests a comprehensive, evidence-based analysis of the UHI-related studies conducted in Malaysia from January 2004 to December 2024. Overall, scanning from 2910 references, 115 significant publications were selected for comprehensive analysis. The review highlights critical contextual and environmental factors, for example, land use and land cover (LULC) changes, urban green and blue spaces, thermal variation, and urban air pollution. The research classifies UHI studies into six main areas: UHI dynamics, ecological impacts, the efficiency of blue-green infrastructure (BGI), LULC change, urban air pollution caused by urbanization, and cooling strategies. Literature identified increasing awareness and attention on UHI mitigation in Malaysian cities over the years. The review also discovers methodological advances, research gaps, and global leadership in the field, offering valuable recommendations for future research. By addressing UHI phenomena from environmental and policy perspectives, this review supports climate resilience, sustainable urban development, and improved environmental quality in Malaysia. This review also suggests strategies that can be applied worldwide for climate resilience and sustainable urban planning, as analysed through Malaysian urbanization trends using satellite datasets, geospatial models, and remote sensing (RS) techniques.