In 2000, more than half (52.5%) of the world’s urban population lived in cities of less than 500,000 people, and Kansas is certainly no exception to this. In urban areas anthropogenically altered surfaces replace natural surfaces, and these altered surfaces have drastically different radiative properties than their predecessors. Consequences of these surface alterations include an increase in the urban air temperature, called an urban heat island, and, possibly, a change in the spatial distribution of precipitation over and around the urban areas brought on by the urban heat island’s impact on convective circulations. Studies regarding these urban microclimate alterations have largely ignored cities on the order of those present in Kansas. Using MODIS surface temperature data from the summers of 1996-2006, the goal is to determine the current intensity and extent of urban heat islands in Kansas cities ranging in size from Emporia to the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The addition of NEXRAD precipitation data analysis over the same time period will illustrate which of these urban areas has a significant impact on the spatial distribution of rainfall in the area. Summertime data is used because this is when mid-latitude heat islands are at a maximum, and the rainfall is predominantly convective. Preliminary results featuring July 2004 are presented and discussed. This work is vital in understanding how small scale urbanization in Kansas is affecting the climate in the area.