Since 1955, NORAD has been tracking by radar the progress of Santa Claus on his annual trek south from the North Pole to bring joy to the hearts of small and not so small children on Christmas Day. On December 24, Santa Claus takes off with this reindeer and sleigh from the North Pole to visit the children amongst the earth’s almost seven billion inhabitants.
Is the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) a Santa Tracker?
Norad’s involvement in tracking Santa came after Sears mistakenly used the telephone number of the Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) – since 1958 known as NORAD – in an advertisement as the “hotline” children could phone to speak to Santa. When the first call came in, CONAD decided not to scramble jets but rather told the young caller Santa’s exact position and ever since NORAD has been tracking Santa's progress from the North Pole around the world.
How Does the NORAD Santa Tracker System Find Santa?
Where is Santa? Currently, NORAD uses radar, satellites, Santa Cams, and jet fighter aircraft to track Santa’s progress.
- Radar is first use to detect Santa’s departure from the North Pole
- Satellites with infrared detectors able to zoom in on heat picks up the signals next – in an age of modern technology, Rudolph’s red nose is a dead giveaway.
- Santa Cams are pre-positioned to take snapshots and video from Santa Claus and his reindeer in action – shots are placed on NORAD’s website as soon as they become available.
- Jet fighters from both the Canadian and US air forces are scrambled to welcome Santa to North America. Some of these fighters are equipped with additional Santa Cams.
The NORAD Tracks Santa Operations Center
Less anyone thinks December 24 is a good day to aim a wayward missile at North America, as NORAD’s attention clearly must be elsewhere, better think again. The NORAD Tracks Santa Operations Center is staffed by close to 600 volunteers, while the Pentagon staff keeps an eye out for real missiles and other unwelcome flying objects. These volunteers are kept busy with around 55,000 phone calls and 100,000 emails from around the world.
The NORAD Tracks Santa Operations Center operates in English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish. From 2 a.m. Mountain Time on December 24, NORAD gives a minute-by-minute update of Santa’s exact position – in 2006, Santa was spotted at locations as diverse as Hawaii, New York, Peru, Germany, Egypt, Japan, New Zealand, the International Space Station, and of course the North Pole itself. The Official Santa Mail accepts emails year round.
- See also German Advent & Christmas Markets
Henk Bekker - Henk Bekker is a freelance travel writer currently living on the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland.
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