The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and Google now have their radars powered up, ready for the annual one-night, round-the-world-flight of a certain resident of the North Pole.
For more than 60 years, NORAD has aimed its tracking capabilities toward following the progress of Santa Claus and his reindeer as he takes flight on Christmas Eve to deliver toys around the world.
What began as answering calls for children anxious to check on Santa’s progress, has turned into a website that lets you track Santa in real-time.
For the hardcore Santa follower, NORAD’s website does not disappoint. Visitors can head to the website to watch a movie, play some games, hear some music and learn about St. Nicholas, his elves and his sleigh.
NORAD, honoring its tradition, provides updates by phone on Christmas Eve. You can get a Santa update by calling 1-877-HI-NORAD on Dec. 24. A person will be there to answer questions.
If callers are unable to reach a live volunteer, a recorded update on Santa’s location will be available, according to the command.
Times being what they are, you can, of course, follow Santa on Facebook or Twitter, and even shoot him an email (noradtrackssanta@outlook.com).
You can go to NORAD’s tracking site here.
Over at Google, they have pulled out all the Christmas stops this year.
Google’s Santa Tracker includes Santa’s Village. There is a countdown clock there, too, and as we move toward Dec. 24, Santa’s Village “transforms into a tracking experience where you can follow Santa and his reindeer as they deliver presents to kids around the world.”
Google also reminds users that you can search for Santa directly in Google Maps and google.com in addition to using their Santa tracker. You can even go into Street View to look at the cities he is visiting as he makes his trip to deliver toys.
For those who want to speak Santa into existence — at least his location on Christmas Eve — you can ask Alexa, Amazon’s personal assistant, or Google Home the question, “Where is Santa?” and get an answer.
Of course, the burning question is “When will Santa arrive at my house?” While Santa has his own schedule, he generally makes it to most homes between 9 a.m. and midnight (local time).
As Santa has made clear for centuries, if the kids are not asleep in a given home, he’s moving on to the next house.