Free tools · Measured from space
Surface water in Gauteng
In 2025, Gauteng had 131 km² of open water on average, 104 km² of it nearly all year. The wettest year since 1984 was 2022 (141 km²); the driest 1984 (78.7 km²).
Open water seen on the ground from space: dams, lakes, rivers wide enough to see, pans, wetlands with open water and flooded fields. Each year, the Landsat satellites look at every 30 m spot many times; where the sky is clear, each look says water or not. The average water area counts each spot for the share of its clear looks that were wet. Permanent water was wet in more than 80% of the clear looks; seasonal water was wet at least once but less often than that.
What it isn’t: not how full a dam is (that is the Department of Water and Sanitation’s weekly level, by volume), not groundwater, not rain, and not water in pipes or tanks. Narrow rivers, water under trees or bridges and anything smaller than about 30 m are missed. A year with few clear looks (cloud, or the early years when fewer satellites flew) is less sure, and 1988 is missing everywhere because Digital Earth Africa does not have it: a missing year is left out, never counted as dry.
2025
- 131 km²Water on average0.72% of the land; 119% of the 1991 to 2020 average (110 km²)
- 104 km²PermanentWater in more than 80% of the clear looks
- 294 km²SeasonalWet at least once, but not most of the year
- 98%Of the place seenThe share with at least one clear look
The wettest and driest years
- 2022Wettest, 141 km²753 km² wet at some point
- 1984Driest, 78.7 km²61.1 km² permanent
Among the 40 years in which at least 90% as much of the place was seen as in its best year (1 less well seen year is left out), so a cloudy year cannot pass for a dry one.
Every year since 1984
Show the numbers
| When or what | Figure |
|---|---|
| 1984 | 78.7 km² on average, 61.1 km² permanent |
| 1985 | 60.8 km² on average, 60.8 km² permanent |
| 1986 | 87.1 km² on average, 63.9 km² permanent |
| 1987 | 97.7 km² on average, 87.3 km² permanent |
| 1988 | not held |
| 1989 | 109 km² on average, 91.4 km² permanent |
| 1990 | 109 km² on average, 88.8 km² permanent |
| 1991 | 114 km² on average, 87.1 km² permanent |
| 1992 | 82.7 km² on average, 61.4 km² permanent |
| 1993 | 86.6 km² on average, 61.7 km² permanent |
| 1994 | 92.7 km² on average, 72.8 km² permanent |
| 1995 | 92.2 km² on average, 66.4 km² permanent |
| 1996 | 124 km² on average, 92.2 km² permanent |
| 1997 | 129 km² on average, 63.0 km² permanent |
| 1998 | 119 km² on average, 97.7 km² permanent |
| 1999 | 111 km² on average, 90.2 km² permanent |
| 2000 | 132 km² on average, 110 km² permanent |
| 2001 | 117 km² on average, 99.5 km² permanent |
| 2002 | 118 km² on average, 98.8 km² permanent |
| 2003 | 93.4 km² on average, 74.8 km² permanent |
| 2004 | 102 km² on average, 83.4 km² permanent |
| 2005 | 97.6 km² on average, 81.6 km² permanent |
| 2006 | 120 km² on average, 98.9 km² permanent |
| 2007 | 104 km² on average, 84.8 km² permanent |
| 2008 | 117 km² on average, 94.4 km² permanent |
| 2009 | 119 km² on average, 96.1 km² permanent |
| 2010 | 125 km² on average, 99.2 km² permanent |
| 2011 | 120 km² on average, 98.3 km² permanent |
| 2012 | 111 km² on average, 90.8 km² permanent |
| 2013 | 110 km² on average, 90.0 km² permanent |
| 2014 | 118 km² on average, 96.1 km² permanent |
| 2015 | 108 km² on average, 84.9 km² permanent |
| 2016 | 105 km² on average, 79.2 km² permanent |
| 2017 | 116 km² on average, 93.7 km² permanent |
| 2018 | 116 km² on average, 87.8 km² permanent |
| 2019 | 103 km² on average, 81.1 km² permanent |
| 2020 | 108 km² on average, 84.8 km² permanent |
| 2021 | 121 km² on average, 92.3 km² permanent |
| 2022 | 141 km² on average, 103 km² permanent |
| 2023 | 133 km² on average, 96.5 km² permanent |
| 2024 | 103 km² on average, 78.4 km² permanent |
| 2025 | 131 km² on average, 104 km² permanent |
| Year | Water on average | Permanent | Seasonal | Wet at some point | Seen |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 131 km² | 104 km² | 294 km² | 398 km² | 98% |
| 2024 | 103 km² | 78.4 km² | 232 km² | 311 km² | 98% |
| 2023 | 133 km² | 96.5 km² | 662 km² | 758 km² | 98% |
| 2022 | 141 km² | 103 km² | 650 km² | 753 km² | 98% |
| 2021 | 121 km² | 92.3 km² | 405 km² | 498 km² | 98% |
| 2020 | 108 km² | 84.8 km² | 243 km² | 328 km² | 98% |
| 2019 | 103 km² | 81.1 km² | 267 km² | 348 km² | 98% |
| 2018 | 116 km² | 87.8 km² | 438 km² | 525 km² | 98% |
| 2017 | 116 km² | 93.7 km² | 241 km² | 334 km² | 98% |
| 2016 | 105 km² | 79.2 km² | 312 km² | 391 km² | 98% |
| 2015 | 108 km² | 84.9 km² | 256 km² | 341 km² | 98% |
| 2014 | 118 km² | 96.1 km² | 172 km² | 268 km² | 98% |
| 2013 | 110 km² | 90.0 km² | 151 km² | 241 km² | 98% |
| 2012 | 111 km² | 90.8 km² | 116 km² | 206 km² | 98% |
| 2011 | 120 km² | 98.3 km² | 87.3 km² | 186 km² | 98% |
| 2010 | 125 km² | 99.2 km² | 137 km² | 236 km² | 98% |
| 2009 | 119 km² | 96.1 km² | 119 km² | 215 km² | 98% |
| 2008 | 117 km² | 94.4 km² | 129 km² | 223 km² | 98% |
| 2007 | 104 km² | 84.8 km² | 116 km² | 200 km² | 98% |
| 2006 | 120 km² | 98.9 km² | 142 km² | 241 km² | 98% |
| 2005 | 97.6 km² | 81.6 km² | 69.3 km² | 151 km² | 98% |
| 2004 | 102 km² | 83.4 km² | 92.7 km² | 176 km² | 98% |
| 2003 | 93.4 km² | 74.8 km² | 63.4 km² | 138 km² | 98% |
| 2002 | 118 km² | 98.8 km² | 93.3 km² | 192 km² | 98% |
| 2001 | 117 km² | 99.5 km² | 85.7 km² | 185 km² | 98% |
| 2000 | 132 km² | 110 km² | 93.9 km² | 204 km² | 98% |
| 1999 | 111 km² | 90.2 km² | 85.5 km² | 176 km² | 98% |
| 1998 | 119 km² | 97.7 km² | 110 km² | 207 km² | 98% |
| 1997 | 129 km² | 63.0 km² | 178 km² | 241 km² | 98% |
| 1996 | 124 km² | 92.2 km² | 125 km² | 217 km² | 98% |
| 1995 | 92.2 km² | 66.4 km² | 152 km² | 219 km² | 98% |
| 1994 | 92.7 km² | 72.8 km² | 45.9 km² | 119 km² | 98% |
| 1993 | 86.6 km² | 61.7 km² | 151 km² | 212 km² | 98% |
| 1992 | 82.7 km² | 61.4 km² | 54.4 km² | 116 km² | 98% |
| 1991 | 114 km² | 87.1 km² | 182 km² | 269 km² | 98% |
| 1990 | 109 km² | 88.8 km² | 99.4 km² | 188 km² | 98% |
| 1989 | 109 km² | 91.4 km² | 94.0 km² | 185 km² | 98% |
| 1987 | 97.7 km² | 87.3 km² | 21.8 km² | 109 km² | 98% |
| 1986 | 87.1 km² | 63.9 km² | 87.7 km² | 152 km² | 98% |
| 1985 | 60.8 km² | 60.8 km² | none | 60.8 km² | 68% |
| 1984 | 78.7 km² | 61.1 km² | 49.2 km² | 110 km² | 98% |
A year missing from the table is one Digital Earth Africa does not have for this place (1988 everywhere, 1985 in some places).
Every municipality, ranked · On the explore map
Source
Measured from space by the American Landsat satellites: not a survey on the ground.
Credits and how we worked this out
Water Observations from Space, Digital Earth Africa (CC BY 4.0), modified: we counted each 30 m pixel over every 2026 ward and added the wards up into municipalities, districts and provinces. Under CC BY 4.0, from the AWS Registry of Open Data.
Landsat imagery courtesy of the U.S. Geological Survey.
Mueller, N. and others (2016): Water observations from space: mapping surface water from 25 years of Landsat imagery across Australia, Remote Sensing of Environment 174, 341 to 352.
Dataset: surface water by ward, release of 12 November 2026.