Observed, not estimated

Find out what water has actually done
where you live.

Insurers hold detailed flood data on roughly 14 million Australian homes. You do not. Watermark builds the public version from open government data: forty years of satellite water observations, live river gauges, and the terrain under your street.

Built entirely from Geoscience Australia, the Bureau of Meteorology and OpenStreetMap.

Watermark Australia’s open flood record

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This is a record of what public satellites and public river gauges observed, with the dates attached. It is not a flood risk assessment, a certificate, a forecast, or a substitute for your council’s flood study. Absence of observed water is not evidence of safety: satellites pass every 8–16 days and cannot see through cloud.

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Forty years, one pixel at a time

Time machine

Replay a real flood on the terrain, using the satellite images taken while the water was there.

What this record cannot tell you

Sources. DEA Water Observations from Space, Geoscience Australia (CC BY 4.0). Water Data Online, Bureau of Meteorology (CC BY 4.0). Elevation: Terrarium / NASA SRTM. Roads and watercourses: OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

For warnings, always use the Bureau of Meteorology (bom.gov.au) and your state emergency service. In a life-threatening emergency call 000; for SES flood help call 132 500.