When will Old Saint Nick head down your chimney this year?
Well, Santa Claus was headed to Kathmandu, Nepal, when Audacy checked in on the North American Aerospace Command (NORAD) Santa Tracker just before noon on Christmas Eve. By that time, NORAD estimated that he had already delivered more than 2 billion gifts.
You can follow NORAD’s tracker here:
NORAD is a U.S.-Canada bi-national organization that ensures air sovereignty and defense by tracking aircraft, missiles, space launches and more. It’s headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colo. It’s predecessor, the Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) began tracking Santa in 1955 and NORAD took over after it was established in 1958.
“While the tradition of tracking Santa began purely by accident, NORAD continues to track Santa,” its website explained. “We’re the only organization that has the technology, the qualifications, and the people to do it. And, we love it! NORAD is honored to be Santa’s official tracker.”
It noted that it can’t predict exactly when Santa will arrive at individual homes.
“We do, however, know from history that it appears he arrives only when children are asleep!” the site said. Most of the time, he visits homes where children believe in him between 9 p.m. and midnight, and will move on if the children inside are awake, it added. NORAD’s tracker will show when Santa is near your city.
According to NORAD, Santa starts his annual Christmas Eve trip to drop off gifts at the International Date Line in the Pacific Ocean and travels west. Still, it noted that weather can make the route unpredictable.
“NORAD coordinates with Santa’s Elf Launch Staff to confirm his launch time, but from that point on, Santa calls the shots,” NORAD said. “We just track him!”
More information about NORAD’s history with Santa and stats on him are available here.