Christmas eve is always a very busy day for Santa Claus; when he's finished busting up Sicilian crime syndicates, he's got to get riding cross the gilded skies on his red sleigh, delivering FedEx packages to doormen the world over. But no need to fear the homeless-looking-man-in-the-sky: as they do every year, the North American Aerospace Defense Command is keeping close track of his movements, using their Official NORAD Santa Tracker.
For NORAD, the "bi-national U.S.-Canadian military organization responsible for the aerospace and maritime defense of the United States and Canada," it's that special time of year when people actually pay attention to them. So as a special treat, there are now several options as how to follow Santa's movements: using Google Maps, using it via your phone, or even using Google Earth! Or twitter! Never again will children need watch out, nor cry, nor shout, nor pout, and NORAD is why.
NORAD also tells us:
Santa trackers will begin answering phones and replying to email at 2:00 a.m. MST (4:00 a.m. EST) on December 24 and will continue until 3:00 a.m. MST (5:00 a.m. EST) December 25. Children of all ages can then call the NTS toll-free number 1-877-Hi-NORAD (1-877-446-6723) or send an email to noradtrackssanta@gmail.com...
The NORAD Tracks Santa program began in 1955 after a phone call was made to the Continental Air Defense Command Operations Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. The call was from a local youngster who dialed a misprinted telephone number in a local newspaper advertisement. The commander on duty who answered the phone that night gave the youngster the information requested - the whereabouts of Santa. This began the tradition of tracking Santa, a tradition that was carried on by NORAD when it was formed in 1958.
Ahh, Christmas spirit!
