Lookout for Santa

by Cladine Zap
Dec. 23, 2009

Christmas Eve is a busy day for one Santa Claus of the North Pole. But just leaving out cookies and milk and hoping that St. Nick will make it to your house is so last century.

This year, with the help of social-networking tools and GPS, you can track Santa’s movements throughout the night, from your mobile phone, your computer, or your car.

Normally, NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) is the U.S.-Canadian military organization that watches over the air and water for security threats.

But on Christmas Eve, the command center switches to Santa mode, and operation Santa Tracker is in full force.

The live tracker incorporates radar, satellites, “Santa Cams,” and yes, even fighter jets, to follow Father Christmas on his goodwill gift-giving tour.

Last year, the Colorado Springs command center needed 100 phones and 25 computers to handle almost 70,000 calls and 6,000 emails from some 200 countries who wanted to know when Santa would make it to their town.

And if Yahoo! searches are any indication, NORAD may need more than that this Christmas Eve. Queries have soared 240% for “santa tracker norad” in the last day alone.

Lookups have also increased on “santa trackers,” “live santa tracker,” and “norad santa tracker games.”

NORAD has a partnership with Google Maps, which incorporated Santa’s path on its map software, as well as on Google Earth.

(Last year the tech company mistakenly placed Toronto on the U.S. side of the border. But that has since been corrected — international crisis averted.)

This year, the vehicle-navigation company OnStar is on board with GPS tracking, so drivers with the in-car GPS can keep an eye on Santa’s trip while en route to Grandma’s house.

The NORAD Santa Tracker will also be up on Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and YouTube. Don’t say Santa doesn’t keep up with the times.

Follow Buzz Log on Twitter.

 

Source: Yahoo News

 

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think. dan@youngchronicle.com