Colorado Springs, Colorado; December 24th, 2025
As Christmas Eve unfolds across time zones and living rooms glow with expectation, the North American Aerospace Defense Command is carrying out one of its most enduring seasonal traditions. According to an official release from the U.S. Department of War, NORAD is actively tracking Santa Claus as he makes his journey around the world tonight.
The annual NORAD Tracks Santa program blends modern aerospace capability with a tradition that stretches back decades. Using the same systems designed to monitor airspace and defend North America, NORAD follows Santa’s progress as he departs the North Pole and moves across continents, oceans, and borders.
NORAD officials stated that the operation incorporates radar, satellites, aircraft, and geographic data to trace Santa’s route in real time. Infrared sensors aboard satellites are said to detect the glow of Rudolph’s red nose, while fighter aircraft periodically escort Santa’s sleigh as it passes through monitored airspace, continuing a ritual familiar to generations.
The program began accidentally in the 1950s, when a misprinted phone number led children to call NORAD’s predecessor instead of Santa. Rather than turning callers away, officers answered their questions, and a tradition was born. Since then, NORAD has formally embraced the role, expanding the effort into a global event supported by volunteers and digital platforms.
According to the Department of War release, service members and civilian volunteers are staffing phones and online systems throughout the night, responding to inquiries from children and families eager for updates. The program now reaches audiences worldwide, offering live maps, updates, and interactive features that follow Santa’s progress from one time zone to the next.
NORAD emphasized that the tradition serves a simple purpose during an otherwise demanding mission year. It connects the command’s work to the public in a way that is lighthearted, familiar, and rooted in goodwill, while reminding families that the people behind the systems are neighbors, parents, and community members as well.
The Santa tracking operation does not interfere with NORAD’s core mission. Officials noted that the command remains fully capable of carrying out its defense responsibilities while simultaneously participating in the seasonal event, a balance that has been maintained for decades.
As Christmas Eve night advances, NORAD’s screens light up not with alerts, but with a red suited figure moving steadily westward, marking the passage of the holiday across the globe. For one night each year, advanced defense technology turns its gaze from threat detection to tradition, following a journey powered by imagination and expectation.
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Sources
Primary First Hand Sources
- U.S. DEPARTMENT OF WAR, Defense Department News release announcing NORAD’s Christmas Eve Santa tracking operation, December 2025
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