Where is Santa Claus? Where is Santa Claus?

Christmas Eve is here, and Santa Claus is getting ready for his annual trip from the North Pole to homes around the world. In keeping with a decades-old tradition, the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, will once again track Santa's journey to deliver gifts to children before Christmas 2024, using an official map that is constantly updated to show Santa 's current location .

NORAD, the agency responsible for monitoring and protecting airspace across the United States and Canada, has been tracking Santa's whereabouts every year since 1958. The agency's predecessor, the Continental Air Defense Command, handled the project for three years before NORAD took over.

Here's what you need to know about Santa Claus's journey this Christmas .

 

Where is Santa Claus now?

NORAD updates maps in real time to show Santa's current location as he flies around the world. From his starting point at the North Pole, Santa travels south along the Pacific Rim through Asia, Australia, Africa and Europe, delivering more than 5 billion gifts and counting. He stops at the South Pole, and as darkness falls in the Western Hemisphere, he travels through South America and the Caribbean, then north across the Atlantic Ocean to Greenland before landing in Canada.

Track Santa's progress on a live map at NORAD's website: https://www.noradsanta.org/en/map or follow regular updates throughout the day on the agency's Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube.

When will Santa Claus come to your house?

While NORAD's trackers show Santa's location at various points on his route around the world, so you can see how far away Santa is from you, the maps can't predict when he'll arrive at a particular apartment. NORAD says its intelligence allows the trackers to track Santa throughout his Christmas journey, but it can't predict where he'll go next after stopping at one location.

' Only Santa knows the route, which means we can't predict where or when he will arrive at your home ,' NORAD writes on its website. ' However, we do know from history that he seems to only arrive when children are asleep! '

 

According to experts at NORAD, Santa Claus typically visits homes between 9 p.m. and midnight on Christmas Eve.

How does the Santa tracker work?

According to NORAD, the tracker relies on radar and satellite technology to track Santa, which the agency notes is similar to the methods it uses to protect the skies over North America. Its radar system, called the North American Warning System, consists of 47 different monitoring stations across northern Canada and Alaska.

" NORAD closely monitors radar for signs of Santa leaving the North Pole each holiday season. As soon as our radar says Santa has taken off, we begin using the same satellites that are used to provide airborne warning of possible missile launches targeting North America ."

Families can also get updates over the phone from the NORAD Tracks Santa Operations Center — just call 1-877-HI-NORAD (1-877-446-6723) to speak with a NORAD operator who can tell you Santa's exact location. The line is open from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. ET on Dec. 24.

More than 1,250 uniformed personnel from the United States and Canada volunteer to answer the phone calls and emails NORAD receives while its Santa tracker is active on Christmas Eve.

What else is there to know about the Santa tracker?

NORAD says Santa typically begins his Christmas journey at the International Date Line, located in the Pacific Ocean, and continues west around the world. That means he has historically started by visiting areas in the South Pacific before traveling to New Zealand, Australia, Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, Central America and South America, in that order.

" Remember, Santa's route can be affected by weather, so it's really unpredictable ," NORAD said, adding that they " coordinate with Santa's Elf Launch Team to confirm his travel time, but from that point on, Santa will be the one to decide ."