Light
Designing for the low winter sun in Lisbon
Lisbon gets more winter sun than almost any European capital. A short guide to letting it in — and keeping the summer out.
Written by
Amara Okafor
Head of research
On the winter solstice the sun in Lisbon rises to just 28 degrees. In June it climbs to 75. That difference is the most useful design tool we have.
Overhangs, measured
A south-facing overhang of roughly a third of the window height blocks most of the summer sun and admits nearly all of the winter sun. We check every one in a sun-path model before it is drawn.
Mass inside, shade outside
Exposed concrete or stone floors store the winter sun and release it at night. In summer, external shutters do far more than any internal blind.
Combined, these moves let most of our houses run without air conditioning.
