Palaceside Building’s 6.2-meter Christmas tree and creative decorations are popular with tenants and visitors, but the countdown to Christmas Eve has begun worldwide — well, Microsoft and Google have opened their “Santa tracking sites” again.
Microsoft and Google — eternal rivals. Setting aside who owns the original Santa tracker, both offer countdowns and varied content. Microsoft partners with NORAD on “NORAD Tracks Santa” — videos of Santa worldwide, daily mini-games, Christmas songs and traditions — in eight languages including Japanese.
North American Aerospace Defense Command sounds formidable — a joint U.S.–Canada integrated defense organization monitoring North American air and space for early detection of threats, watching satellites, nuclear missiles and strategic bombers 24/7. Known as NORAD ＝main photo.
NORAD tracks Santa every year — since 1955 when predecessor CONAD began. It started when a Colorado supermarket misprinted a Santa hotline number in a children’s ad — accidentally the CONAD commander’s direct line. Col. Harry Shoup (1917–2009) told children his radar showed Santa heading south from the North Pole — a tradition ever since.
Since scaling up in 1998, on Christmas Eve NORAD “confirms Santa’s departure by radar,” tracks flight via “reconnaissance satellites and the SantaCam network,” with 1,250 military staff, families and volunteers handling email and phones. In 2006’s Japan relay, Santa’s reindeer speed was cited as 100× the Shinkansen. Since the internet spread, NORAD Tracks Santa livestreams video on Christmas Eve. Google was official partner 2007–2011; Microsoft from 2012.
Some blogs question animation showing fighters escorting Santa’s sleigh — and China/Korea air-defense identification zones? For now, Santa seems under U.S. escort.
Google’s site is “Santa Tracker” — daily games and scenes, countdown, Santa on Google Maps on Christmas Eve. Try peeking with children tonight. URLs below:
≪Site image upper≫ Microsoft & NORAD “NORAD TRACKS SANTA”: http://www.noradsanta.org/
≪Site image lower≫ Google “Santa Tracker”: http://www.google.co.jp/santatracker/#/village2013/12/05
