How to track Santa as he officially begins his Christmas journey

Santa Claus, Father Christmas, or just Santa - whatever you may call him, the big man is on the move.

Santa has officially left the North Pole and is now delivering presents to the many children that have made it onto this year's 'nice list'.

And all of us at home can track his progress as he embarks on delivering presents to children across the entire globe in just a single night.

Getty Stock Photo

Volunteers at the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) are tracking Santa's sleigh as it flies around.

In fact, they've even got a counter for the number of presents he's delivered.

So how is it all done?

Well, experts from the US and Canada team up each year to use a a series of satellites to keep watch for signs of Santa and his Reindeer, with over 1,250 volunteers making sure you know where he is on Christmas Eve.

NORAD first started to track Santa back in 1955, making this the 68th time they've followed his progress through the skies.

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It all came about when a kid accidentally called NORAD (then called CONAD) after seeing a newspaper advert for kids to call Santa Claus.

Colonel Harry Shoup instructed his staff to check their radar for signs of Santa after he had left the North Pole, subsequently starting the Christmas tradition we all know and love.

In 2023, Santa is tracked by satellite instead of radar, but NORAD has stuck to traditions by having an operational hotline you can call to ask exactly where in the world he is right now.

NORAD

You can follow Santa's progress on this map.

As for how fast Santa delivers all the presents in a single night, well, that answer has been provided by AI.

"To visit every house in the world in a single night, Santa would have to move at an incredibly fast speed," the AI bot said.

"Estimates vary, but some calculations suggest that Santa would have to visit around 390,000 houses per minute. This means he would have less than a thousandth of a second to spend at each house! Santa's magical abilities and the spirit of Christmas make this feat possible in the realm of holiday folklore."