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Currently our world is facing a migration process of a huge dimension – from rural to urban areas. In 1975 37.7% of the global population were urban dwellers, 1990 already 43%, today little over 50%, and in 2050 the expected number is 67.2%. This great process shapes new spatial urban landscapes, in dimension and pattern. In this study we aim at analyzing the spatial evolution of a once polynuclei urban area to a mega-region in a 35 years time frame. Using multi-temporal and multi-source satellite data we classify urban footprints of a mega-region – the Hong Kong–Shenzhen–Guangzhou mega-region in Southern China – for the years 1975, 1990, 2000 and 2011. Based on this geospatial data set we aim at turning the qualitative and fuzzy definitions of mega-regions into a physical concept. Furthermore, we suggest a set of spatial features potentially characteristic for the evolution of mega-regions. In particular …