We are only a few hours away from the magical time when Santa Claus makes his grand voyage to deliver presents on this festive Christmas celebration.
As Father Christmas, along with his troupe of reindeer, embarks on this enchanting journey, kids from all around the globe eagerly await his arrival, their eyes twinkling with excitement and rooms filled with joyful anticipation.
Now, the young ones waiting for Saint Nick can trace his exact location using the interactive NORAD’s Santa Tracker tool. Parents can assist their excited little ones in tracking Santa’s whereabouts starting from 11am GMT, continuing until bedtime.
How NORAD works – and where Santa goes first
Children may find it hard to get some sleep due to their anticipation and curiosity, but the NORAD tracker can give them a fun sneak peek into where Santa currently is and how many presents he has delivered so far.
On setting off from his homeland in the North Pole, Santa begins his epic journey across continents, and it is believed that he visits about 390,000 homes per minute, which comes to around 6.424 homes per second!
Santa commences his gift distribution at the Republic of Kiribati, located in the central Pacific Ocean. Next, he will be making his way to New Zealand, Australia, Asia, Africa and finally arriving in the UK.
Being Santa Claus, he will not forget to snack on the cookies and sweet treats left for him by adorable kids, while his reindeer munch on juicy carrots. After touring homes in Scotland, the team will cross the Atlantic, reaching out to the kids residing in the US, Canada, Mexico, and wrapping up the journey in South America.
What is NORAD and how did it start?
Kids have been utilising the NORAD tracker to follow Santa’s path for generations. Previous to the virtual tool, children could learn about Santa’s location by phoning the NORAD hotline during December.
The NORAD tracker was born in 1955 in the US, following an ad that mistakenly printed the wrong telephone number for children to dial and converse with Santa. NORAD, representing the North American Aerospace Defense Command, is accountable for monitoring the airspace of the US and Canada.
Children started calling NORAD in the hopes of reaching Santa due to the typographical error in the ad. The operations head, Colonel Harry Shoup, instructed his team to check the radar periodically to note Santa’s southern movement from the North Pole.
Any child who ventured to connect with the incorrectly listed number received an update about Santa’s location. This accidental misprint gave birth to the now beloved NORAD tracker.
To observe Santa commencing his epic journey at the North Pole on Christmas eve, visit NORAD’s tracker or download their Santa tracking app. Those with Amazon Alexa can request updates about Santa’s location anytime on December 24 using the NORAD Tracks Santa skill.
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