Fire up the radar screen because it is time for the NORAD Santa Tracker 2012! Yes, Christmas Eve is here and countless children from ages 1 to 100 want to know where Santa Claus is as he makes his way from the North Pole. Begun by Colonel Harry Shoup in 1955, the North American Air Defense Command has been letting all the boys and girls know where Old St. Nick is with his sack of Christmas presents and cheer. This year, NORAD has some competition between Google Earth Maps and Bing Maps, which are also available to track that jolly fellow. For several years, NORAD and Google shared the duty, but NORAD is now partnering with Bing. So who will win the battle of the Santa Trackers? Does it really matter so long as the children are happy?

NORAD santa tracker 2012

The whole enterprise started in 1955 when Sears & Roebuck set up a Santa hotline. But one newspaper made an error with the phone number, which led to many children calling NORAD instead. Col. Shoup, the then Chief of Operations, took charge in true military fashion and accommodated the children with the latest updates on Santa′s location. Today, some 1,250 volunteers will be manning telephones as well as social networks and Twitter to provide minute-by-minute updates. But for the latest information, as well as other fun material, the NORAD Santa Tracker website is your best source. Or, you can call their hotline: 1-877-HI-NORAD (446-6723). If you are overseas, the phone number is 1-719-556-5211. You can also get an email update from noradtracksanta@outlook.com.

We at RightPundits will do our part this Christmas Eve with an embed for the NORAD Santa Tracker 2012. So for your convenience, you may bookmark this page and stay current on where Santa Claus is. St. Nick has a long night ahead of him before rejoin Mrs. Claus and the elves at the North Pole. NORAD dropped Google Earth Maps this year and instead is partnered with Bing Maps. The tradition begun in 1955 by Col. Harry Shoup is alive and well in the 21st Century.