This dataset contains maps of the location and temporal
distribution of surface water from 1984 to 2020 and provides
statistics on the extent and change of those water surfaces.
For more information see the associated journal article: High-resolution
mapping of global surface water and its long-term changes
(Nature, 2016) and the online Data Users Guide.
These data were generated using 4,453,989 scenes from Landsat
5, 7, and 8 acquired between 16 March 1984 and 31 December 2020.
Each pixel was individually classified into water / non-water
using an expert system and the results were collated into a monthly
history for the entire time period and two epochs (1984-1999,
2000-2020) for change detection.
This product contains metadata about the observations that went into
computing The Global Surface Water dataset. Areas where water has never
been detected are masked.
Bands
Pixel Size 30 meters
Bands
Name
Min
Max
Pixel Size
Description
detections
0*
2007*
meters
The number of water detections in the study period.
valid_obs
0*
2076*
meters
The number of valid observations in the study period.
total_obs
0*
2417*
meters
The total number of available observations (i.e. scenes) in the study period.
* estimated min or max value
Terms of Use
Terms of Use
All data here is produced under the Copernicus Programme and is provided
free of charge, without restriction of use. For the full license
information see the Copernicus Regulation.
Publications, models, and data products that make use of these datasets
must include proper acknowledgement, including citing datasets and the
journal article as in the following citation.
If you are using the data as a layer in a published map, please include the
following attribution text: 'Source: EC JRC/Google'
Citations
Citations:
Jean-Francois Pekel, Andrew Cottam, Noel Gorelick, Alan S. Belward,
High-resolution mapping of global surface water and its long-term changes.
Nature 540, 418-422 (2016). (doi:10.1038/nature20584)
This dataset contains maps of the location and temporal distribution of surface water from 1984 to 2020 and provides statistics on the extent and change of those water surfaces. For more information see the associated journal article: High-resolution mapping of global surface water and its long-term changes (Nature, 2016) and …
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],[],[[["\u003cp\u003eThis dataset is deprecated; use JRC/GSW1_4/Metadata instead for updated information on global surface water.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eIt provides statistics on the location and temporal distribution of surface water from 1984 to 2020, including extent and change analysis.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eData was generated using Landsat 5, 7, and 8 imagery, classifying each pixel as water or non-water.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThe dataset includes metadata about the observations used to create the Global Surface Water dataset, focusing on areas with detected water.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eIt is freely available for use under the Copernicus Programme, requiring proper attribution in publications and maps.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],[],null,["# JRC Global Surface Water Metadata, v1.3 [deprecated]\n\n**Caution:** This dataset has been superseded by [JRC/GSW1_4/Metadata](/earth-engine/datasets/catalog/JRC_GSW1_4_Metadata). \n\nDataset Availability\n: 1984-03-16T00:00:00Z--2021-01-01T00:00:00Z\n\nDataset Provider\n:\n\n\n [EC JRC / Google](https://global-surface-water.appspot.com)\n\nTags\n:\n geophysical \n google \n jrc \n landsat-derived \n surface \n surface-ground-water \nwater \n\n#### Description\n\nThis dataset contains maps of the location and temporal\ndistribution of surface water from 1984 to 2020 and provides\nstatistics on the extent and change of those water surfaces.\nFor more information see the associated journal article: [High-resolution\nmapping of global surface water and its long-term changes](https://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v540/n7633/full/nature20584.html)\n(Nature, 2016) and the online [Data Users Guide](https://storage.googleapis.com/global-surface-water/downloads_ancillary/DataUsersGuidev2.pdf).\n\nThese data were generated using 4,453,989 scenes from Landsat\n5, 7, and 8 acquired between 16 March 1984 and 31 December 2020.\nEach pixel was individually classified into water / non-water\nusing an expert system and the results were collated into a monthly\nhistory for the entire time period and two epochs (1984-1999,\n2000-2020) for change detection.\n\nThis product contains metadata about the observations that went into\ncomputing The Global Surface Water dataset. Areas where water has never\nbeen detected are masked.\n\n### Bands\n\n\n**Pixel Size**\n\n30 meters\n\n**Bands**\n\n| Name | Min | Max | Pixel Size | Description |\n|--------------|-----|--------|------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|\n| `detections` | 0\\* | 2007\\* | meters | The number of water detections in the study period. |\n| `valid_obs` | 0\\* | 2076\\* | meters | The number of valid observations in the study period. |\n| `total_obs` | 0\\* | 2417\\* | meters | The total number of available observations (i.e. scenes) in the study period. |\n\n\\* estimated min or max value\n\n### Terms of Use\n\n**Terms of Use**\n\nAll data here is produced under the Copernicus Programme and is provided\nfree of charge, without restriction of use. For the full license\ninformation see the Copernicus Regulation.\n\nPublications, models, and data products that make use of these datasets\nmust include proper acknowledgement, including citing datasets and the\njournal article as in the following citation.\n\nIf you are using the data as a layer in a published map, please include the\nfollowing attribution text: 'Source: EC JRC/Google'\n\n### Citations\n\nCitations:\n\n- Jean-Francois Pekel, Andrew Cottam, Noel Gorelick, Alan S. Belward,\n High-resolution mapping of global surface water and its long-term changes.\n Nature 540, 418-422 (2016). ([doi:10.1038/nature20584](https://doi.org/10.1038/nature20584))\n\n### Explore with Earth Engine\n\n| **Important:** Earth Engine is a platform for petabyte-scale scientific analysis and visualization of geospatial datasets, both for public benefit and for business and government users. Earth Engine is free to use for research, education, and nonprofit use. To get started, please [register for Earth Engine access.](https://console.cloud.google.com/earth-engine)\n\n### Code Editor (JavaScript)\n\n```javascript\nvar dataset = ee.Image('JRC/GSW1_3/Metadata');\n\nvar visualization = {\n bands: ['detections', 'valid_obs', 'total_obs'],\n min: 100.0,\n max: 900.0,\n};\n\nMap.setCenter(71.72, 52.48, 0);\n\nMap.addLayer(dataset, visualization, 'Detections/Observations');\n```\n[Open in Code Editor](https://code.earthengine.google.com/?scriptPath=Examples:Datasets/JRC/JRC_GSW1_3_Metadata) \n[JRC Global Surface Water Metadata, v1.3 \\[deprecated\\]](/earth-engine/datasets/catalog/JRC_GSW1_3_Metadata) \nThis dataset contains maps of the location and temporal distribution of surface water from 1984 to 2020 and provides statistics on the extent and change of those water surfaces. For more information see the associated journal article: High-resolution mapping of global surface water and its long-term changes (Nature, 2016) and ... \nJRC/GSW1_3/Metadata, geophysical,google,jrc,landsat-derived,surface,surface-ground-water,water \n1984-03-16T00:00:00Z/2021-01-01T00:00:00Z \n-90 -180 90 180 \nGoogle Earth Engine \nhttps://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets\n\n- [](https://doi.org/https://global-surface-water.appspot.com)\n- [](https://doi.org/https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets/catalog/JRC_GSW1_3_Metadata)"]]
