Where is Santa right now? How to track Father Christmas around the world

Jasper King

Published December 24, 2024 7:00am Updated December 24, 2024 2:42pm

It is getting to that time of year again when Father Christmas gathers up his reindeer to deliver presents to children (and adults) across the globe.

But delivering presents to eight billion people across the world is quite the feat – even with the help of reindeer.

This means that Santa has to travel around 32 million miles – the equivalent distance between Earth and Mars.

He will be visiting 390,000 homes per minute, so he will have to work fast to make sure everybody’s wish comes true this Christmas.

This means Father Christmas travels at lightning speed across the sky so it is impossible to see him.

Thankfully there is another way you can track him – on the good old internet.

How to track Santa Claus this Christmas

Every year, as Santa sets off on his sleigh from Lapland, it is the job of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (Norad) to track his journey across the world on December 24, Christmas Eve.

In this photo provided by the North American Aerospace Defense Command, 22 Wing members are seen showing how they track Santa on his sleigh on Christmas eve during a media preview at the Canadian Forces Base in North Bay on Dec. 9, 2021. In a Christmas Eve tradition going on its 66th year, a wildly popular program run by the U.S. and Canadian militaries is providing real-time updates on Santa's progress around the globe -- and fielding calls from children who want to know St. Nick's exact whereabouts. (Sable Brown/NORAD via AP) — Norad tracks Santa each year as he makes his way around the planet handing out gifts to all the children (Picture: AP)

Norad usually monitors aerospace in the event of nuclear attack, but for the last six decades, the organisation has enjoyed something a bit more jolly during the festive season, sharing the whereabouts of Father Christmas and his reindeer as they travel the globe.

Those wishing to watch Santa’s journey across the world this Christmas and monitor his progress can do so thanks to the NORAD Santa website, where a digital Santa on his sleigh pulled by reindeer traverses a 3D map of the world in the build up to Christmas Day .

In this photo provided by the North American Aerospace Defense Command, a 22 Wing member is seen showing how they track Santa on his sleigh on Christmas evening during a media preview at the Canadian Forces Base in North Bay on Dec. 9, 2021. In a Christmas Eve tradition going on its 66th year, a wildly popular program run by the U.S. and Canadian militaries is providing real-time updates on Santa's progress around the globe -- and fielding calls from children who want to know St. Nick's exact whereabouts. (Sable Brown/NORAD via AP) — A 22 Wing member shows how NORAD tracks Santa on his sleigh over Christmas (Credits: AP)

Google also have their own Santa tracker, santatracker.google.com which shows exactly where in the world he is and how many presents he’s dropped off so far.

Google says that during his journey, Father Christmas visits every country and 419 different locations over the course of 25 hours.

This includes the ruins of the ancient city of Myra, Turkey, where the legendary St Nicholas was the bishop, Rovaniemi, Finland, which many consider to be the ‘home of Santa Claus’, and as always he’s taking a quick pass by the town of Santa Claus, Indiana.

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