The availability of daylight from tropical skies - a case study of Malaysia

In Malaysia, no long-term daylight data are measured. It was only recently that the need to measure the availability of daylight became urgent when the importance of daylighting in buildings was rediscovered. The hourly daylight availability has been simulated for the Malaysian sky using daylight modelling techniques based on empirical and measured solar irradiation and cloud cover data. This paper presents the techniques involved in producing exterior illuminance data. These data were then compared with measured illuminance at Shah Alam and Bangi, Malaysia. The global illuminance levels are generally high, with values exceeding, 80,000 lux at noon during the months when solar irradiation is highest. Even during the months when the ground receives less solar irradiation, the peak illuminance can reach 60,000 lux. Applications and uses of such data are in daylighting design, both for visual and thermal comfort, task illuminance and energy-conscious design of buildings. Recommendations are made at the end of the paper on the various climatic data that are required to be measured for overall daylighting design applications. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.