It’s a Christmas Eve tradition that has delighted parents and children across the U.S. for 70 years now: tracking Santa Claus as he circles the globe, with the help of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD.
It’s a Christmas Eve tradition that has delighted parents and children across the U.S. for 70 years now: tracking Santa Claus as he circles the globe, with the help of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD. Follow a live updating map below as NORAD once again tracks Santa‘s journey from the North Pole to deliver gifts to children around the world.
Where is Santa right now?
NORAD updates its map in real time to show Santa’s locations on his trip around the world. The journey begins from the North Pole, and NORAD uses its expertise in satellite technology to track the route of Santa’s sleigh as it glides through the sky.
In addition to the live map on NORAD’s website, updates are being posted on the agency’s Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube pages.
Most years, Santa’s route takes him down the International Date Line in the Pacific Ocean and moves westward from there, with his first stops being in the South Pacific, New Zealand and Australia. Then he typically zigzags through Asia, Africa and Europe before making his way across the Atlantic Ocean to Canada, the U.S., Mexico, and Central and South America.
NORAD notes that his path can sometimes be unpredictable.
When will Santa be at your house?
The experts at NORAD say Santa typically makes his stops between 9 p.m. and midnight on Christmas Eve, but the tracker can’t predict the specific time he’ll stop at an individual home.
“Only Santa know his route, which means we cannot predict where and when he will arrive at your house,” NORAD writes on its website. “We do, however, know from history that it appears he arrives only when children are asleep!”
What is NORAD?
NORAD, which is short for the North American Aerospace Defense Command, is a bi-national organization involving both the U.S. and Canada. It is headquartered at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs, and its year-round mission is to defend North America “through aerospace warning, aerospace control, and maritime warning.”
NORAD’s technology includes the North Warning System, a powerful radar system with 49 installations across Alaska and northern Canada. NORAD also relies on satellites positioned 22,300 miles above the Earth with infrared sensors for detecting heat, and it has fighter jets at its disposal for patrolling and protecting its territory.
“Twenty-four-seven, 365 days a year, we’re monitoring the skies of North America for any airborne threats,” U.S. Air Force Col. Jason White told CBS News.
On Christmas Eve, that expertise is used for a more festive purpose.
How does the Santa tracker work?
Beginning early in the morning on Dec. 24, NORAD begins tracking Santa’s path from the North Pole and maps his journey as he delivers presents to children around the world. The NORAD Tracks Santa Operations Center is staffed by uniformed personnel and civilian volunteers to answer phone calls and provide updates on Santa’s location.
You can call 1-877-HI-NORAD (1-877 446-6723) to get a live update from one of the call center operators over the phone. Operators are available from 4 a.m. Mountain Time (6 a.m. Eastern) until midnight MT (2 a.m. ET).
“They logged 380,000 calls last Christmas Eve,” White said.
You can also check NORAD’s website, where updates are available in nine languages: English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Chinese and Korean.
What else is there to know about the Santa tracker?
NORAD has been tracking Santa’s Christmas Eve flights ever since the agency first formed in 1958. Its predecessor, the Continental Air Defense Command, or CONAD, performed the same annual tracking duties for three years before that.
The tradition started in 1955 when a child accidentally called the CONAD Operations Center after seeing an advertisement in the newspaper that encouraged readers to call Santa.
“The individual that answered that phone didn’t want to disappoint the child on the other end, and just went with it. And it has turned into an annual, recurring Track Santa operation ever since,” White said.
NORAD says the program is made possible by volunteers and supported by funding from corporate sponsors.