The official blog for Google Maps
Count down to Christmas Eve with Google Santa Tracker
December 18, 2012
(Cross posted on the
Official Google Blog
)
While millions of people eagerly await Christmas Day, Santa and his elves are keeping busy at the
North Pole
. They’re preparing presents, tuning up the sleigh, feeding the reindeer and, of course, checking the list (twice!) before they take flight on their trip around the world.
While we’ve been tracking Santa since 2004 with Google Earth, this year a team of dedicated
Google Maps
engineers built a new route algorithm to chart Santa’s journey around the world on Christmas Eve. On his sleigh, arguably the fastest airborne vehicle in the world, Santa whips from city to city delivering presents to millions of homes. You’ll be able to follow him on Google Maps and Google Earth, and get his stats starting at 2:00 a.m. PST Christmas Eve at
google.com/santatracker
.
Simulating Santa's path across the world—see it live Dec 24
In addition, with some help from developer elves, we’ve built a few other tools to help you track Santa from wherever you may be. Add the new
Chrome extension
or download the
Android app
to keep up with Santa from your smartphone or tablet. And to get the latest updates on his trip, follow Google Maps on
Google+
,
Facebook
and
Twitter
.
Get a dashboard view of Santa's journey on Google Maps
The Google Santa Tracker will launch on December 24, but the countdown to the journey starts now! Visit
Santa’s Village
today to watch the countdown clock and join the elves and reindeer in their preparations. You can even ask
Santa to call a friend or family member
.
We hope you enjoy tracking Santa with us this year. And on behalf of everyone at Google—happy holidays!
Posted by Brian McClendon, VP of Google Maps and Google Earth
Santa Claus is coming to town... find out where with Google and NORAD
December 23, 2011
(Cross-posted on the
Official Google
blog)
It’s that time of year again! The stockings are hung by the chimney with care and Google and
NORAD
are ready to answer the question of “where?”
NORAD’s tradition of tracking Santa on Christmas Eve
started in 1955
, when a Sears and Roebuck ad promoting the Talk-to-Santa hotline inadvertently sent callers to CONAD (NORAD’s predecessor) commander-in-chief’s operations hotline. After recovering from the surprise that the call was not from the Pentagon or the White House but instead a little boy inquiring if the commander was Santa Claus, Colonel Harry Shoup asked his team to
check their radar
for signs of Santa’s sleigh and a tradition was born.
The Santa tracking tradition has
grown
over the years and today it’s also possible to track Santa using
Google Earth
and
Google Maps
on the
NORAD Santa site
, and on your mobile phone as well. Starting tomorrow (Saturday, December 24) at 2:00 a.m. EST, visit
www.noradsanta.org
to follow Santa’s journey from the North Pole to homes all over the globe. This year there are many ways to keep tabs on Santa’s sleigh, no matter how quickly it moves:
Follow Santa on Google Maps:
Visit
www.noradsanta.org
to see where Santa is currently flying and where he’s headed next on Google Maps. Click on the video icons to watch
“Santa cam” videos
from all over the world, and the gift icons will display information about each city along the route.
Watch Santa fly in 3D with the Google Earth plug-in:
If you have the
Google Earth plug-in
installed on your computer, you can track Santa’s location in 3D and see him deliver presents everywhere from the mountain villages of the Swiss Alps to the white sand beaches of Hawaii.
Track Santa from your mobile phone:
Follow Santa on the go by searching for [santa] on the
Google Maps for mobile
app.
Get updates via social media:
The NORAD team will be posting updates about Santa’s flight throughout the day on December 24. Follow them on
Google+
,
Twitter
or
Facebook
for live updates.
Subscribe to the NORAD Tracks Santa YouTube channel: All “
Santa cam
” videos will be posted on the
NORAD Tracks Santa YouTube channel
as they’re captured. You can also watch a recap of
Santa’s 2010 trip
. Check back often for updates!
Santa flying over London in Google Earth
NORAD Tracks Santa is a special project near and dear to all of us involved. I started working on the program seven years ago and it’s been a thrill to watch it grow over the years. Recently, I was given the opportunity to speak at TEDActive about the origins of NORAD Tracks Santa and how Google has brought this to life in Google Earth.
I’d like to thank all of Santa’s “elves” that helped out across Google and NORAD far and wide. Happy Holidays!
Posted by Bruno Bowden, Lead Google Engineering Elf
Here comes Santa Claus
December 1, 2011
Whether you know him as
Père Noël, Weihnachtsmann, Babbo Natale, Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas
or
Santa Claus
, there’s a chance you’re anticipating a visit from the jolly old man this December 24. Although he goes by many different names, the magic he brings to the holidays is felt by children and adults celebrating Christmas all over the world.
Growing up in Lawrence, Kansas, I have fond memories of racing to the tree Christmas morning to see what Santa left during his stop in my town. Sometimes it took a lot of work to stay on the right side of the “naughty or nice” list, but Santa came through for me every year.
Like most traditions, this one has evolved over time. Now, in addition to racing downstairs to their stockings, children can follow Santa online on his annual trip from the North Pole to their chimney. With
NORAD Tracks Santa
, children and families can watch Santa as he delivers presents all over the globe (with a little help from the North American Aerospace Defense Command). If you haven't yet followed this tradition in your family, we'd like to invite you to join us this Christmas Eve.
The countdown to track Santa begins today. Visit
www.noradsanta.org
the entire month of December to play
holiday games
and learn fun facts about
NORAD
and
Santa
. Set a reminder for 2 a.m. EST on December 24 to start tracking Santa in real-time on the website using
Google Maps
, and in 3D with
Google Earth
. If your phone is handy on Christmas Eve, you can also search for [santa] on
Google Maps for mobile
to track his journey on the go.
Wherever you are, we look forward to counting down to the holidays with you at
www.noradsanta.org
. Be sure to finish all your holiday shopping in time so you can join us for the main event on December 24.
In the meantime, to get into the Santa tracking spirit, follow NORAD Tracks Santa on
Google+
and enjoy a few highlights from last year’s journey in this video:
Posted by Brian McClendon, VP of Engineering, Google Earth and Maps
Dashing through the snow... with NORAD and Google
December 23, 2010
[Cross-posted from the
Official Google Blog
]
Every Christmas Eve, children all over the world ask themselves—and their parents—questions about Santa’s magical journey.
How does Santa visit so many children in one night? Will he eat the cookies I left out? How does he fit all those presents into his sleigh?
These childhood mysteries are part of what makes the Santa tradition so special.
There’s one timeless question that we’re proud to say we can help answer:
Where in the world is Santa at this very moment?
Thanks in part to recent advances in warp-speed GPS technology and some very clever elves (elveneering?)
NORAD Tracks Santa
is once again prepped and ready to go.
Starting tomorrow, December 24 at 2:00am EST, visit
www.noradsanta.org
to follow Santa as he journeys around the world delivering presents to children in more than 200 countries and territories. There are a few different ways to find the jolly old man in his unmistakable red suit over the course of the day, so feel free to track him using any of the following methods:
See Santa on a Google Map:
On your home computer or laptop, visit
www.noradsanta.org
and choose your preferred language. You’ll see a large Google Map on the page displaying Santa’s current location and his next stop. Click the video icons to watch
“Santa Cam” videos
, and click the gift icons to learn more about each city.
Watch Santa fly with the Google Earth Plug-in:
From
www.noradsanta.org
, click on the link
Track Santa in Google Earth
. You'll see Santa steering his sleigh right on the webpage. If you don't have the Google Earth plug-in, you can get ready by
downloading
it ahead of time.
Follow Santa on your phone:
Track Santa from your mobile phone by opening
Google Maps for mobile
and searching for [santa]. Or, visit
m.noradsanta.org
on your phone’s browser.
Subscribe to his YouTube channel:
Santa’s home on YouTube is at
http://www.youtube.com/noradtrackssanta
. That’s where you can find videos from his journey throughout the night.
Get real-time information about Santa’s location:
Use Google’s
Realtime Search
to get updates from social networks, news and micro-blogs like Twitter at
@noradsanta
, and keep up with news about his journey on this
Facebook page
.
For any techie questions you might have, we’ve also put together some helpful
tips and tricks
about all the cool ways you can experience Santa’s journey. Now that you know how to follow Saint Nick on Christmas Eve, it’s our tradition to tell the story of how this all started...
NORAD
(North American Aerospace Defence Command)
first began to track Santa
in 1955 when a misprinted advertisement in a Sears & Roebuck catalogue mistakenly led callers expecting a Santa-hotline to the NORAD commander-in-chief's telephone. Embracing the spirit of the season, NORAD used its satellite and radar capabilities to offer callers sleigh-location updates, and has
tracked Santa's whereabouts
on Christmas Eve ever since. Then in 2004, Google started tracking Santa on Google Earth as a 20% project, which in 2007 grew into a partnership with NORAD, adding the mapping technology of
Google Maps
and
Google Earth
to the NORAD experience. Over the years, other Google teams have also joined in the holiday fun (
YouTube
, Google Voice’s
www.SendACallFromSanta.com
and
Google SketchUp
).
As we approach this year’s Christmas Eve adventure, Santa was able to take a break from the preparations to visit the New York Stock Exchange this past Monday. His helpful elves kept everything at the North Pole on schedule while folks from Google and NORAD attended the Closing Bell ceremony, and stood alongside Santa from Macy’s going over last minute details about tomorrow’s big ride.
Santa with NORAD, Google and members of the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation (that’s me, the tall guy in the back row clapping)
So don’t forget to visit
www.noradsanta.org
tomorrow morning starting at 2:00am EST when Santa embarks on his flight. From all of us here at Google, happy holidays and here’s to a very happy New Year!
Posted by Brian McClendon, Original Google Engineering Elf
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