town in Gauteng, South Africa
Centurion is a city of 237,000 people (2011) in the Tshwane district of South Africa between Pretoria to the north, and Midrand and Johannesburg to the south. It is home to the Waterkloof Air Force Base, and the Swartkop Air Force Base (which includes the South African Air Force Museum).
Formerly Lyttelton and Verwoerdburg, the city was renamed following the end of Apartheid after the Centurion Park cricket stadium, now known as SuperSport Park.
Irene, a village that is part of Centurion, is covered in a separate article. It is home to the Smuts House Museum and the Irene Dairy Farm.
Centurion sits on the Highveld like Johannesburg and Pretoria and has a similar climate, with dry, sunny winters (max. daytime temperature around 20 °C dropping to an average minimum of 5 °C), and warm to hot summers (October - April) tempered by late-afternoon showers often accompanied by spectacular thunder and lightning. Hailstorms are not uncommon, but a serious hailstorm has not happened for many years. Summer temperatures range from the mid-20s to the mid-30s (°Celsius). Centurion's weather tends to follow the slightly warmer Pretoria, when compared to that of Johannesburg.
The Hennops River flows through the heart of Centurion, and causes occasional flooding when heavy rainfall has occurred.
Centurion is between Pretoria and Johannesburg. If you are coming by plane, you can take a ride from OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg using the R21 motorway. From Pretoria, use the R101 motorway to reach Centurion.
Centurion has a station on the high-speed Gautrain, running between Johannesburg and Pretoria. It's possible to arrive from OR Tambo by train, via a change at Marlboro station.