Being a satellite is, in a sense, a defining stamp on the life of a satellite city and its population. Orientation toward the central city manifests itself in intensive and varied ties, labor and educational commuter migration, and residents' regular trips for cultural and everyday needs.
The essence of the phenomenon
In geo-urbanism, satellites are understood to mean all cities that exist within the zone of direct influence of a central city, and not only those that urban planners built according to projects specifically designed for a satellite city. These are, so to speak, the urban-planning-official satellites, the "legitimate" ones from the architects' point of view.
Near Moscow there is only one such satellite — Zelenograd, which is simultaneously an administrative district of the capital.
In reality, however, the cohort of Moscow's satellite cities includes cities not only from Moscow Region but also from districts of neighboring regions situated along its borders: Obninsk, Balabanova, Zhukov, Tarusa, and Borovsk in Kaluga Region; Konakovo in Tver Region; Aleksandrov with the cities of Strunino and Karabanovo, as well as Petushki with the cities of Kosterevo and Pokrov in Vladimir Region.
Historical background
The transition from a point-based form of territorial concentration to an areal (agglomeration-based) one intensified the contrast in settlement patterns. It was especially striking because in the past the leading cities of Russia did not surround themselves with satellites.
In general, cities were, as it were, obliged to maintain a distance from one another and not to draw too close to the leading city, so as to preserve their own sphere of influence.
The relatively even distribution of cities across the territory was determined by the very logic of administrative-territorial division and by the administrative function that had historically been predominant for cities.
The sole exception was Saint Petersburg, which was created simultaneously with the satellites surrounding it, serving various purposes — residences, fortresses, and industrial centers. The creation of satellites fully corresponded to the logic of the evolution of settlement patterns. This new category of cities, born in mass numbers by the twentieth century, occupied a special place in the settlement system.
Satellites became a means of harnessing the potential of leading centers and addressing their increasingly complex socioeconomic and urban-planning challenges.
Satellite cities in Russia
In the zones of direct influence of large cities of all ranks — of which Russia had 168 in 2002 — approximately 350 cities are concentrated. Old cities in these zones are comparatively few; younger cities predominate. Among these, newly built cities account for a very significant share, although numerically they are outnumbered by cities that developed from semi-urban, semi-rural settlements through the gradual accumulation of urban functions and urban characteristics in their appearance, population composition, and functional structure.
Thus, roughly one-third of all Russian cities are located within the zones of influence of major centers. This is a very striking phenomenon, reflecting the strong agglomeration emphasis in the country's settlement pattern. Comparatively few large cities make no use of satellites, as though they do not trust them to perform part of their functions. Among these are such significant centers as Omsk, Khabarovsk, Tyumen, Kurgan, Ulan-Ude, Syktyvkar, and Yoshkar-Ola.
There are approximately 100 newly built cities among the satellites. The emergence and deliberate creation of cities in the environs of major centers has been driven by the evolution of settlement patterns and corresponds to its natural course.
Science cities (naukogrady) are a new type of city distinguished by unique intellectual potential. The overwhelming majority of them prefer to be satellites. In the vicinity of the leading city that gave birth to them — literally — they enjoy the most favorable conditions for their activities.
The Union of Science Cities that exists in the Russian Federation unites around 70 centers. Of these, 46 are official cities, 6 are "numbered" (status unknown), 4 are Akademgorodoks of Siberian centers, 7 are urban-type settlements, and two are urban districts (in Balashikha and Balakhna). Old cities include Biysk, Michurinsk, Istra, Pereslavl-Zalessky, and Melenki. Cities that are young but have old-established centers include Reutov, Klimovsk, Krasnoarmeysk, Primorsk, and the Ural factory-cities of Miass, Nizhnyaya Salda, and Ust-Katav. Newly built cities predominate. The largest family of science cities is the Moscow-suburban one. The capital has stimulated the development of almost half of Russia's science cities in its surrounding area. These are famous names — Obninsk, Dubna, Korolev, Fryazino, Chernogolovka, Protvino, Pushchino, Zhukovsky, and others.