For 364 days a year, NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) tracks everything that flies in or around the US and Canada. One day a year, on December 24th, they have an additional mission: tracking Santa. According to a NORAD spokesman, “We’re the only organization that has the technology, the qualifications, and the people to do it.”
NORAD’s tracking of Santa began in 1955 when a child accidentally called the Continental Air Defense Command Operations Center in Colorado looking for Santa. According to norad.mil, “each year since, NORAD has dutifully reported Santa’s location on December 24th to millions of children and families across the world.”
What does tracking look like? NORAD hosts 47 installations across Alaska and Canada. As soon as Santa departs the North Pole, NORAD tracks him via globally integrated satellites using infrared sensors, ideal for detecting Rudolph’s nose. In addition to satellite tracking, NORAD conducts additional tracking using F-16, F-15 and CF-18 planes.
While children still call NORAD at 1-877-HI-NORAD to get information on Santa’s location, these days, technology plays an increasingly large role: social media, mobile apps and noradsanta.org all assist in tracking, offering countdown clocks, games and videos available in multiple languages.
Funding for the tracking of Santa comes from volunteers and corporate contributions, including local companies like Microsoft, Zillow, AWS and Centurylink. Read more at noradsanta.org to gain insight into NORAD’s mission, technical details on Santa’s sleigh and information on the history of tracking Santa.