Santa watchNORAD continues tradition of tracking Santa Claus
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) is using twenty-first century gear to track Santa Claus: Streaming video, Santa Cams, Google Maps, and Google Earth (and Google Analytics, to watch the watchers)
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. Just ask the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). On Christmas Eve 1955, a young Colorado Springs resident dialed a phone number advertised by Sears Roebuck in a local newspaper that promised to connect him to Santa Claus. Instead, he reached Col. Harry Shoup at NORAD.
I’ll never forget it … the red phone rang, and it’s either the Pentagon calling or the four star general, General Partridge. So I picked it up and said, “Yes, sir, this is Col. Shoup… Sir? This is Col. Shoup … I said, Sir, can you read me alright?” “Are you really Santa Claus?” And I looked around [at] my staff and said, “Someone’s playing a joke on me and this isn’t funny.” I say, “Would you repeat that please?” “Are you really Santa Claus?” I knew then there was some screw up in the phones.
Amy Zalman writes that as befit a cold war officer, Shoup readily agreed to check radar systems for signs of Santa Claus. Half a century later, NORAD continues the tradition of tracking Santa, but now it is all done in twenty-first century style. Streaming video, Santa Cams, Google Maps, and Google Earth (and Google Analytics, to watch the watchers) will all play a part in following the gift-giving journey.
Santa’s journey can be followed on the Web at the NORAD tracks Santa Web site in seven languages including, for the first time this year, Chinese. Live tracking will begin at 11:00 a.m. GMT time (6:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time) today. You may also call 1-877-HINORAD or e-mail [email protected]
