DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) - Every Christmas Eve, NORAD takes on a special mission: tracking Santa Claus as he delivers presents to children around the world.
Using radar systems and satellites normally reserved for national defense, NORAD follows Santa’s sleigh as it travels from continent to continent. Families can track Santa’s progress online or call NORAD to find out where he is along his journey.
“It’s hard to describe the feeling of joy,” said Christine Rummel, NORAD’s director of cyber space operations. “You never know who you’re going to talk to or where that child or adult will be calling from in the world.”
The tradition began 70 years ago after a newspaper misprint accidentally listed a military phone number for children trying to reach Santa. Instead of redirecting the calls, NORAD personnel answered them, creating a holiday tradition that continues today.
“It started by accident,” Rummel said. “A local newspaper ran an ad with a call number for children to call Santa, and that number actually rang into NORAD’s predecessor. Throughout the night, they were inundated with calls from children asking where Santa was.”
Each year, millions of people from across the globe follow Santa’s route on Christmas Eve. NORAD volunteers use the same technology they rely on every day to track Santa’s sleigh.
“Through the capabilities we use every single day — satellites and radar — we’re even able to detect the signature of Rudolph’s nose,” Rummel said.
Volunteers say the calls bring smiles throughout the night.
“There are smiles in the call centers,” Rummel said. “There’s sharing of, ‘I just got a call from Taiwan,’ or ‘I just got a call from this location.’ It’s joy.”
As Christmas morning approaches, NORAD says the tradition offers a moment to pause and focus on something positive.
“It allows us to take a step back and forget about everything happening in the world and concentrate on the belief that Santa is going to come and bring presents to all the good boys and girls,” Rummel said.
As families wait for Christmas morning, NORAD will continue watching the skies, keeping a decades-old holiday tradition alive.
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