On radars for 70 years - US and Canadian militaries again track Santa's Christmas tour
Photo: US President Donald Trump also tracked Santa’s journey (Getty Images)
On Wednesday, December 24, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) once again tracked Santa Claus’s flight, a tradition that has continued for 70 years, according to Reuters.
Which Santa is being tracked
The NORAD Santa Tracker is a festive online service run by the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) that each year on Christmas Eve “tracks” Santa Claus’s journey around the world.
The website features an interactive map showing Santa’s supposed real-time location, how many countries he has "visited," and how many gifts he has "delivered." The project is aimed primarily at children and families and has become one of the most well-known Christmas internet traditions.
The service’s history began by accident in 1955. A Christmas advertisement by the Sears department store printed an incorrect phone number, and children trying to call Santa Claus were instead connected directly to the operations center of the Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD), the predecessor of NORAD.
The duty officer chose not to disappoint the children and jokingly began telling them where Santa was "located." Since then, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) has kept the tradition alive every year, turning it into a global service with maps, websites, apps, and thousands of volunteers.
What NORAD says today
NORAD representatives noted that they began tracking the fictional Santa exactly 70 years ago. At the same time, they say NORAD does not know which route Santa Claus will take in any given year.
The only certainty, they add, is that Santa always departs from his base at the North Pole.
"NORAD tracks Santa, but only Santa knows his route, which means we cannot predict where or when he will arrive at your house," a senior NORAD official said in a press statement.
According to information on its website, NORAD tracks Santa’s takeoff using its polar radar network and then follows his journey using the same satellites employed to warn of potential missile launches aimed at North America.
"As soon as Santa's lead reindeer, Rudolph, switches on his shiny red nose, military personnel can zero in on his location using the satellites' infrared sensors," Reuters reported.
Trump speaks with children and follows Santa
On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump appeared to be following Santa Claus’s NORAD-tracked route while sitting by a Christmas tree at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida and answering phone calls from children across the country.
Speaking to one child from Pennsylvania, Trump said:
"Right now, Santa is in Copenhagen, Denmark, but he’s heading to our country. What would you like Santa to bring you?" the president asked.
In another call, Trump jokingly explained the need to track Santa from a national security perspective:
"We want to make sure no agents have infiltrated him, that we’re not letting a bad Santa into our country," the White House chief said.
As previously reported, during one of the calls, Trump remarked that he could talk about the holiday all day, but added that he needed to return to issues related to Ukraine, Russia, and China.
He also said the United States needs more people with high IQs and boasted that "yesterday’s GDP was 4.3%," two points higher than expected, attributing the growth to the tariffs he introduced.
