Nesenskiygorod
Nesenskiygorod |
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Несенскийгород |
Flag |
Government |
Body: Nesenskiygorod Council of Deputies |
Head: Serafina Frolova |
Established: 2041 |
Astronomical: Earth |
Country: Russian Federation |
Subdivision: Krasnoyarsk Krai |
Local Subdivision: Nesenskiygorod Urban Okrug |
Population |
Estimate (2114): 380,206 |
Rank: 54th |
Time zone: UTC+7 |
Official languages: Russian |
Nesenskiygorod (Russian: Несенскийгород) is a city and the administrative center of its similarly-named urban okrug in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, at the mouth of the Yenisey River. It is the largest city on Earth north of the Arctic Circle, with an estimated population of 380,206 as of 2114. The city is an important Arctic port and urban center, informally designated the "Capital of the Arctic" by its residents and forming an important stopping point from where Siberian resources are exported into the wider Arctic Ocean and even into orbit. Despite its industrial roots, Nesenskiygorod is considered the Arctic's largest cultural center and is hosts a highly cosmopolitan population.
Geography[edit | edit source]
Nesenskiygorod sits on the east side of the mouth of the Yenisey river, where it flows into the Yenisey Gulf and the Kara Sea. The city center, Natalya, sits south of the small Natalya River and directly east of where the Yenisey's delta terminates. To the north lies the Yenisey Gulf and Nesenskiygorod's docks, where it derives its status as the principal commercial port of central Siberia, while its east and west are formed by terraformed plains pockmarked by rough hilly areas left over from the area's original terrain, some even from before global warming, when the ground under Nesenskiygorod was permafrost and anathema to standard construction- parts of the city's old town sit on piles for this reason. Further afield to the south, patches of Siberian pine dot rough terrain around the Yenisey.
History[edit | edit source]
The city was officially founded on March 20th, 2041, as the urban centerpiece of the Russian Federation's massive Siberian Plan, an economic project meant to turn much of Siberia, and central Siberia specifically, into a new industrial region for Russia as the area became more hospitable and thawed under the effects of climate change. Construction and terraforming of the area had started four years earlier under Russian President Sergei Sobyanin, who personally attended Nesenskiygorod's official founding.
The city was named Nesenskiygorod after its primary urban planner, architect and engineer, Mikhail Nesenskiy, a major political ally of Sobyanin's, who is credited with having made efficient the massive logistical operation needed to terraform, construct and sustain the city in the still-remote wilderness of the Russian far north. While the grand forges, ports and parks of Nesenskiygorod initially went underused, an economic boom in Russia during the mid-2040s largely credited to the Siberian Plan caused the city's population to explode as Russians, native peoples and foreigners in equal vigor moved to the "Capital of the Arctic".
Nesenskiygorod's industrial boom period far exceeded the expectations of Nesenskiy and Sobyanin, with the cargo carriers departing its ever-expanding port enriching the Russian Federation greatly, though with not too much benefit to the common man. A highway built in 2054 connecting it to Krasnoyarsk led to greater ease of travel between northern and southern Siberia, bringing with it even more economic immigration- the high proportion of foreigners is notable, encouraged by Russian mining tycoons as a source of cheap labor but inadvertently creating a highly dynamic and cosmopolitan cultural scene among the city's cafes and theaters, even as heavy industry and smokestacks loomed in full view- noted by some as a stark contrast to the much more oppressive atmosphere of Norilsk. From the 2060s onward, the city became the nexus of the "Arctic identity", a growing shared mythos and union of interacting Arctic cultures, as quickly melting ice and frequent trade brought with it extensive communications between the disparate peoples of the north.
The city's historical economic core, its mining-driven shipping industry, declined heavily during the 2080s as Russia simply found itself without any more easily extracted resource deposits in Nesenskiygorod's region of Siberia, and less so in Siberia in general- the Siberian Plan, Russia's economic (and to a lesser extent, political) rebirth, had run its course, and mine after mine found itself closing its doors (though with a silver lining in the accompanying precipitous decline of the already-weakened Russian oligarchs). Such a decline's effects were very visible in Nesenskiygorod- a sizable portion of the city, historically a residential and commercial zone for temporary mining workers, was slowly but surely abandoned and the city's population dropped by nearly 70 thousand from 2082-to-2090.
The 22nd century- a new age for humanity, and a new age for Nesenskiygorod as well. By 2099, the city's population had roughly stabilized, and, while the city can no longer be regarded as the economic behemoth it once was during the late 21st, it found a reawakening in a more service-oriented economy. Russian and Arctic culture flourished in Nesenskiygorod, and the Council of Deputies reoriented itself towards encouraging this cultural growth, with a preexisting diverse population and well-serviced spaceport turning the city into the cultural center of the now nearly ice-free Arctic.
Administrative divisions[edit | edit source]
Both locally and for administrative purposes, Nesenskiygorod is divided into 11 districts.
- (1) Natalya, the mixed-use cultural and city center
- (2) Akademgorodok, a center of research and higher education
- (3) Andreigorodok, a residential, light commercial and nightlife area
- (4) Nizhe-Yenisey, a mixed-use district with an emphasis on business and offices
- (5) Sobyanin, a large residential area and formerly the main home for temporary workers
- (6) Shumakher, a mixed-use expansion of the city and a hub for foreigners, especially Germans, who gave the area its bastardized name
- (7) Nizhny Port, the northern section of the Port of Nesenskiygorod, falling into disuse in favor of Verkhniy Port during the 2080s
- (8) Reyna, a home for the city's heavy industry
- (9) Vladimirsky, an outer heavy industrial and shipping district largely abandoned during the 2080s
- (10) Nentseygorodok, a mainly commercial and tourist-oriented area to the outer southeast
- (11) Verkhniy Port, the southern section of the Port of Nesenskiygorod
Demographics[edit | edit source]
The population of Nesenskiygorod includes a number of distinct peoples- Russians make up the thin majority, joined in notable minorities by Nenets, Belarusians, Ukrainians, Germans, Americans, Canadians, Norwegians, Icelanders, Inuit, Evens and many other circumpolar peoples. Many of these groups immigrated during the city's industrial boom period as foreign workers. The city's population reached an estimated maximum of 460,805 in 2078.
Religion[edit | edit source]
The faiths of Nesenskiygorod's inhabitants are highly varied as a result of the city's cosmopolitan population, and while a plurality (34.4%) of the city follows the Russian Orthodox Church, shamanism, Ukrainian Orthodoxy, animism, agnosticism, outright atheism, Sunni Islam, any number of flavors of European Protestantism and even a web of 21st-century New Age adherents find themselves in Nesenskiygorod in significant numbers. Russian Orthodoxy in the city, specifically, has diverged somewhat from its overseers in Moscow as a result of interaction with many other cultures and faiths. Nesenskiygorod's Isher Mosque is considered the farthest north on Earth.
Architecture[edit | edit source]
The architecture of Nesenskiygorod is often informally recognized as the Nesenskiy style- most buildings created during the city's initial construction were created in a ruggedized neofuturistic style personally overseen by Nesenskiy, emphasizing clean lines and white facades that blend into the city's frequent snowfall, with accommodations for the area's frigid climate, though said climate has grown milder over the course of Nesenskiygorod's history due to global warming. Even many industrial complexes were built with at least a façade of neofuturism. Newer areas, however, were largely created without regard for architectural harmony- far from detracting from the city's landscape however, many say the still well-built complexes on the outskirts of the old town of varying styles and builders add appeal to any tourists. Green space and parks are widespread in the city, lowering its population density despite the almost entirely urban nature of Nesenskiygorod.
Nesenskiygorod's tallest building is Aleksandrova Spire, an office tower and hotel in high-tech modernist style that offers wide views of the (somewhat desolate) landscape outside the city and which appears in many tourism advertisements.
Culture[edit | edit source]
Nesenskiygorod is widely considered the cultural capital of the Arctic and of the north of Siberia, and is known especially for its orchestras and theater, the Twilight Sailors (a travelling theater group based out of Nesenskiygorod's Shumakher district), for example, renowned across Siberia, Russia and much of Eurasia, even travelling past cislunar space.
The city is said to be the center of the developing Arctic identity, a cultural movement said to have sprung from extensive interaction, physically and along highly developed telecommunications, between the circumpolar peoples of the rapidly thawing Arctic Ocean. Supporters of it attempt to define a shared Arctic mythos, culture and lifestyle, centered around frigid ruggedness, self-expression and diversity.
Education and science[edit | edit source]
While the educational nexus of central Siberia has historically and still is concentrated in the much more southern city of Tomsk, Nesenskiygorod is still a prominent educational center and research location for northern Siberia and the Arctic, helped by the fact that it is often the only educational center for the peoples of the Russian Far North. 14 institutes of higher education make their homes within the city's Akademgorodok district, also a hub of Arctic wildlife and geographic research. The most notable are:
- North Siberian Institute of Technology (founded 2041)
- Arctic Agrarian University (founded 2049)
- North Siberian Aerospace Institute (founded 2070)
- Nesenskiygorod University (founded 2041)
- Nesesnkiygorod State Medical University (founded 2058)
- Sobyanin State University of Economics (founded 2094)
- Tsiolkovsky Orbital Sciences University (founded 2055)
- Nesesnkiygorod State University of Engineering and Physics (founded 2041)
Transportation[edit | edit source]
Metro
The Nesenskiygorod Metro was created in tandem with the initial expansion of the city in the 2040s, and consists of three lines with 38 stations.
Sea
The Port of Nesenskiygorod is the largest of its kind in both area and transit numbers north of the Arctic Circle, and is famous as the gateway to central Siberia, both for tourists and companies. The city is also a popular stop on Arctic cruises during the summer and less so during the winter, with a small but significant tourist population joining the city in the warmer months. The Russian Navy maintains a medium-sized submarine base on the western side of the Yenisey, across from the Port.
Road
In contrast to its sea, air, space and rail links to the Arctic and out to the wider Sol system, Nesenskiygorod's local road network fans out into the desolate tundra surrounding the city only as far as its suburbs extend, as there exists little incentive to build new road links through the harsh Siberian terrain to small towns and villages- the city still possesses a small road connecting it to Norilsk, and a larger highway, considered one of the most remote in the world, snaking across the Yenisey to Krasnoyarsk, connecting to the larger Russian road network there.
Much of Nesenskiygorod's central old town is restricted to cars and vehicles, allowing for the liberal application of bike lanes and pedestrian pathways. While more industry-oriented parts of the city are clearly designed around trucks and factories, the contraction of the shipping industry and Nesenskiygorod's reorientation around a service economy have shifted focus to these well-thought-out urban streets and boulevards. While Mikhail Nesenskiy was certainly politically motivated to create a functional city, none can deny that he is at least partly responsible for the brilliant urban planning and layout of Nesesnkiygorod's residential and commercial areas, its many parks and pedestrian streets shielding the eye from the desolation of the Siberian tundra beyond city limits.
Rail
The city's relatively large rail network has historically been focused on cargo carrying, and the transportation of goods between their origin points in the mines and foundries of Siberia and the Port of Nesenskiygorod, to be shipped to the wider world, and as such, little passenger rail exists outside of commuter rail to Norilsk, a connection to the Salekhard-Igarka Railway at Igarka and a semi-frequent service to Krasnoyarsk, where one can connect to the Trans-Siberian and other more southern Russian railways- the last route is also favored by tourists for its scenic route through central Siberia and along the Yenisey. While Nesenskiygorod is very well connected to Siberia on paper through rail lines, the mines and extraction facilities at the ends of many of these lines lay abandoned by 2114, and much of the Siberian Plan's extensive cargo rail infrastructure goes unused, rendering much of the city's connections moot.
Air
Nesenskiygorod is served solely by Sergei Sobyanin International Airport, a two-runway facility sitting on terraformed plains to the northeast of the city serving as a local hub for Aeroflot. The Russian Air Force and Peacekeeper Corps Air Force maintain an anti-submarine and patrol presence in a restricted area of SSIA.
Space
Sitting across a river from Sergei Sobyanin International Airport is Nesenskiygorod Spaceport, a relatively small but efficient facility consisting of 4 launch racks and 9 landing pads for varying sizes of VTOL/STOL spacecraft and shuttlecraft. It is the only large orbital transit facility in northern Siberia, and serves as the entry/exit point for most of the region.
Tourism[edit | edit source]
Nesenskiygorod is a significant Arctic tourist destination and point of transit- while the former revolves around the diverse culture and unique location of the planned futuristic city, the latter is because it is an important port of entry for northern Siberia, and is where most travellers begin their journey into the untamed wilds of some of the Earth's last great tundras and forests, filled with wildlife and exotic sights. Local tourist destinations include the city's many theaters and museums, as well as some converted industrial factories and mines- it is also rather easy to simply venture out into the pristine Siberian tundra beyond city limits, though this is heavily discouraged by authorities and its only quasi-legal.
Sports[edit | edit source]
The city hosts many sports teams and is often the host of pan-Arctic sports competitions and tournaments, and is a stronghold of winter sports in Russia, especially ice hockey (as a member of the Kontinental Hockey League), competitive tracking, ski orienteering and cold-terrain wargames. Volleyball is also popular in the city. Nesenskiygorod contains 31 sports complexes, of which the multiuse Cybulski Stadium is the largest in the city and the seventh largest in Russia. The city has twice hosted the Winter Universiade, and is the likely (but not yet confirmed) candidate to host the 2118 Winter Olympics.
Twin towns - sister cities[edit | edit source]
Nesenskiygorod is twinned with:
- Trenton, United States of America, Earth
- Gdańsk, Poland (EU), Earth
- Changchun, China, Earth
- Antofagasta, North Chile, Earth
- Samarkand, Uzbekistan, Earth
- Utqiagvik, United States of America, Earth
- Murmansk, Russia, Earth
- Anchorage, United States of America, Earth
- Auckland, New Zealand, Earth
- Selene, Colonial Administration of Luna (UN), Luna
- Armstrong, Colonial Administration of Luna (UN), Luna
- Pyongyang, Korea, Earth
- Sylvane/Platform 3, Colonial Administration of Venus (UN), Venus
- Aria, Colonial Administration of Mars (UN), Mars
- Scofield, Colonial Administration of Mars (UN), Mars
- Lausanne, Switzerland, Earth
- New Montpellier, Colonial Administration of Jupiter (UN), Europa
This page was contributed by user HikariGlace.