Children can track Father Christmas as he makes his epic journey around the world on Christmas Eve, thanks to a special interactive tool called the NORAD Santa Tracker.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) – the air forces tasked with defending US airspace – has tracked Santa’s epic night of deliveries on a map since the 1950s. It is estimated that Father Christmas travels about 510 million kilometres throughout the night delivering presents to children.

You can follow the NORAD tracker online tool or as a phone app. It features 2D/3D tracking maps, SantaCamera videos, games and a countdown calendar available in nine languages. There’s even a running total of the gifts delivered.

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The NORAD Santa Tracker dates back to 1955 when an advert encouraged children to telephone Father Christmas – but gave the wrong number. When U.S. Army Air Corps Colonel Harry Shoup realised what had happened, he quickly told his staff to check the radar for indications of Santa making his way south of the North Pole and give the children who called updates on his current position.

Today, volunteers will be taking thousands of calls from children across the globe asking for Santa’s whereabouts. As a rule, Santa starts out in the Pacific Ocean and travels west, visiting the South Pacific first, then delivering presents to the children of New Zealand and Australia.

From there, he travels to Japan, over to the rest of Asia, across to Africa, then onto Western Europe, Canada, the United States, Mexico and Central and South America.

NORAD also says you can phone its call centre on 1-877-Hi-NORAD (1-877-446-6723) and a staff member will reply and provide details of Santa’s last known location – and also encourage your children to go to bed. You can enjoy the NORAD Santa Tracker by visiting the NORAD website here or by downloading the app on Apple or the Google Playstore.

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How NORAD tracks Santa

The NORAD North Warning System has 47 installations across northern Canada and Alaska. NORAD checks the radar closely for indications of Father Christmas leaving the North Pole and tracks him using the same satellites used in providing air warning of possible missile launches.

These satellites are located 22,300 miles above the earth and have infrared sensors, meaning they can see heat. Rudolph’s bright red nose gives off an infrared signature so the satellites detect it easily.

High-speed digital SantaCams are positioned in many places around the globe. NORAD only uses these cameras once a year – on December 24. They are turned on about an hour before Santa enters a country then switched off after capturing images of him and the reindeer. The images and videos are then downloaded onto the NORAD website for people around the world to see.