
It’s back! In what has become an annual ritual for millions on Christmas Eve, the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, is tracking Santa Claus’s journey from the North Pole to deliver gifts to children across the globe.
NORAD’s Santa Claus tracker website — NORADSanta.org — includes a map that allows users to track Santa’s location in real time. The site attracts tens of millions of visitors every year.
Beginning at midnight on Christmas Eve, the site utilizes satellite mapping technology and digital animation to simulate the route of Santa’s reindeer and sleigh.
The tracker also features a live count of gifts delivered by Jolly Old St. Nick. At the time of this publication, that figure was more than 1.3 billion.
NORAD’s history of tracking Santa
The practice began in 1955 when a child accidentally called the unlisted number of what was then the Continental Air Defense Command Operations Center, asking for Santa Claus.
Not wanting to disappoint the young caller, Air Force Col. Harry Shoup, the command center’s director of operations, “instructed his staff to check the radar for indications of Santa making his way south from the North Pole,” according to NORAD. Each year since, NORAD has dutifully reported Santa’s location on Dec. 24 to millions of children and families.
The binational military organization, based in Colorado Springs, Colo., eventually enlisted volunteers to answer a dedicated phone line to give updates on Santa’s whereabouts. In recent years, those volunteers have included pop stars, presidents and first ladies.
And the hotline still exists: You can call 877-HI-NORAD (877-446-6723) to reach one of the call center’s operators. (President Trump is scheduled to field NORAD Santa calls from Palm Beach, Fla., on Wednesday afternoon.) Last Christmas Eve, it logged more than 300,000 calls.
Just don’t ask when Santa will arrive at your house.
“NORAD tracks Santa, but only Santa knows his route, which means we cannot predict where and when he will arrive at your house,” the organization explains on its FAQ page. “We do, however, know from history that it appears he arrives only when children are asleep!”
latest_posts
- 1
Wizz CEO: We’re going to invest $1 b. in Israeli market - 2
Fireball sightings are surging across the US — here's what's really going on - 3
Google's proposed data center in orbit will face issues with space debris in an already crowded orbit - 4
Cygnus XL brings cargo to the ISS for 1st time | Space photo of the day for Dec. 1, 2025 - 5
Go With The Breeze: Grand Paragliding Spots On the planet
Ukraine: Russians abduct 50 Ukrainians from border village in Sumy
Artemis 2 astronauts are about to see one of the rarest skywatching sights of all — a solar eclipse from beyond the moon
25 Years Ago, Audi's Rosemeyer Concept Was A Steampunk Supercar With A Massive Engine
Journey through Pages: A Survey of \Plunging into Scholarly Universes\
Getting Your Youngsters' Future: Grasping Legacy Regulations
'All's Fair,' Ryan Murphy's new show starring Kim Kardashian, hit with scathing reviews: 'A girlboss fever dream'
Potential Houthi threat to Red Sea shipping could further damage global economy
NASA's Artemis 2 astronauts are cruising to the moon. So why are they doing CPR tests today?
Artemis II astronauts find hidden Easter eggs as they close in on the moon












