It began on Christmas Eve in 1955, when an keen little one picked up the cellphone to name Santa Claus and as an alternative by accident known as a U.S. army air protection facility.
That facility is operated by Continental Air Protection Command (CONAD), the precursor to at the moment’s North American Aerospace Protection Command (NORAD), and will have solely been reachable by a choose few high-ranking officers and the President of the US. However on Christmas Eve 1955, confused airmen normally tasked with monitoring plane from overseas airspace ended up impersonating Santa Claus due to that little one who dialed a mistaken quantity. The accident shortly grew to become a convention and, like many different traditions, its origin story started to develop ever extra elaborate through the years, generally involving a misprinted cellphone quantity in an commercial.
However regardless that NORAD tracks Santa’s flight around the globe on Christmas Eve, that does not imply the air protection command is aware of Kris Kringle’s route forward of time.
“NORAD tracks Santa, however solely Santa is aware of his route, which implies we can not predict the place and when he’ll arrive at your home,” a senior NORAD official stated within the assertion.
The U.S. army’s assertion notes that fighter pilots have intercepted Santa Claus’ sleigh many occasions through the years as he enters NORAD’s airspace. A earlier DOD assertion that’s not obtainable on-line (an archived model is obtainable right here) states NORAD is ready to observe Santa utilizing infrared sensors on satellites which might be designed to detect the warmth from rocket or missile launches.
“As Santa flies via the skies, satellites observe his place by detecting Rudolph’s nostril, which supplies off an infrared signature much like that of a missile,” the assertion reads.
Because the Nineteen Seventies, NORAD has used a collection of satellites often called the Protection Assist Program (DSP) to detect the intense flashes of warmth and light-weight emitted by intercontinental ballistic missiles and rocket launches.
As well as, the U.S. House Drive is at present launching satellites to construct out a brand new infrared early-warning constellation often called SBIRS-GEO (House Based mostly Infrared System Geosynchronous Earth Orbit) to spice up the U.S. army’s potential to detect and observe launches. These satellites characteristic sensors that constantly scan all the Earth, offering 24/7 missile warning functionality. The sensors aboard SBIRS satellites are extra additionally delicate than these on DSP spacecraft, which is able to ultimately be phased out because the SBIRS constellation is accomplished.
Over 1,000 volunteers together with each civilians and uniformed army personnel give their time every Christmas at NORAD’s headquarters at Peterson House Drive Base in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The volunteers reply lots of of hundreds of cellphone calls every year, the DOD’s assertion says.
NORAD’s Santa Tracker goes on-line at 6 a.m. ET (1100 GMT) on Dec. 24. Youngsters of all ages wanting to know the place St. Nick is can name (+1) 877-HI-NORAD (877-446-6723) or go to NORADSanta.org.
NORAD’s Santa Tracker additionally has apps obtainable for Android and iOS.
