New options available for Santa-tracking
Published in Weird News
COLORADO SPRINGS (UPI) -- Anyone who wants to take part in the time-honored custom of track Santa's progress on Christmas Eve choose from multiple Santa-tracking services this year.
Longtime Santa-tracking partners North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, and Google parted ways and each is offering a tracking service, the Los Angeles Times reported Saturday.
NORAD, based in Colorado Springs, has paired up with Bing Maps for a 2-D Santa-tracking display, as well as Cesium to show a 3-D version of Santa's progress. The system will be available online, as well as in application form for Windows, iOS and Android phones.
NORAD's Santa hotline, (877) HI-NORAD, will be functioning as of 2 a.m. Christmas Eve for those with questions about where the jolly elf is.
Google is offering its Santa-tracking application available at google.com/santatracker.
Santa-tracking began in 1955 when U.S. Air Force Col. Harry Shoup -- who was director of operations for the agency that became NORAD -- began receiving calls from children trying to reach Santa. A local Sears store had set up a Santa hotline but misprinted the number in its catalog, sending calls about Santa to Shoup.
The agency has been tracking Santa for the public ever since.
Copyright 2012 by United Press International
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