Keep on eye out for Santa

Kids, track Santa as he makes his annual trek from the North Pole Christmas Eve.

Children who want to ensure they are in bed and asleep before Santa Claus is set to visit their home, are encouraged to visit www.noradsanta.org

This website is home to NORAD, the North American Aerospace Defense Command.

For more than 50 years, NORAD and its predecessor, the Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD), have tracked Santa's Christmas Eve flight.

The tradition began in 1955 after a Colorado Springs-based Sears Roebuck and Co. advertisement for children to call Santa misprinted the telephone number. Instead of reaching Santa, the phone number put kids through to the CONAD Commander-in-Chief's operations "hotline."

The director of operations at the time, Col. Harry Shoup, had his staff check the radar for indications of Santa making his way south from the North Pole. Children who called were given updates on his location, and a tradition was born.

In 1958, the Canadian and American governments created NORAD, which tracks Santa.

NORAD uses four high-tech systems to track Santa - radar, satellites, Santa Cams and fighter jets.

Tracking Santa starts with the NORAD radar system called the North Warning System. This powerful radar system consists of 47 installations strung across the northern border of North America. On Christmas Eve, NORAD monitors the radar systems continuously for indications Santa Claus has left the North Pole.

The moment the radar indicates Santa has lifted off, they use their second detection system. Satellites positioned in geo-synchronous orbit at 22,300 miles from the Earth's surface are equipped with infrared sensors, which enable them to detect heat. Amazingly, Rudolph's bright red nose gives off an infrared signature, which allow our satellites to detect Rudolph and Santa.

The third tracking system is the Santa Cam network, which NORAD began using in 1998, the year the organization put the Santa tracking program on the Internet. Santa Cams are high-tech, high-speed digital cameras pre-positioned at many locations around the world. NORAD only uses these cameras once a year on Christmas Eve. The cameras capture images and videos of Santa and his reindeer as they make their journey around the world.

The fourth system is made up of fighter jets. Canadian NORAD fighter pilots flying the CF-18 intercept and welcome Santa to North America. In the United States, American NORAD fighter pilots in either the F-15 or the F-16 get the thrill of flying alongside Santa and his famous reindeer: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen and Rudolph.

Visit www.noradsanta.org to track Santa and other activities.