[UPDATE: It’s Christmas Eve! The santa tracker is now live!]
Every year since Google Earth was released, Google has provided a way to track Santa as he makes his deliveries around the world. This year is no different, and Google will once again provide tracking based on the data provided from Norad which has been tracking Santa since 1955. But, the tracking doesn’t start until Christmas Eve. Visit the www.NoradSanta.org site to see the countdown or download a gadget to keep the countdown handy. On Christmas Eve day, you’ll be able to follow Santa with Google Earth (or Google Maps), so make sure to check on that day.
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Official Santa Tracker – Google officially teamed up with Norad (the US North American Air Defense Command), which has been tracking Santa on their radar system for many years, to officially provide tracking for Santa in Google Earth. You should visit the NORADSanta.org web site to see the countdown to Christmas Eve and some games and other information related to the tracking system (and choose other languages).
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Santa’s Route – You can check out Santa’s route right now
in Google Earth based on information from Travel by GPS. Click on the “Points” folder and select “Tools->Play Tour” from the GE menu to see a really cool flying tour of the route. Pretend you are Santa! You can E-mail Travel by GPS a placemark from Google Earth for the location of your house, and they will add your house to the route. Click here for more information. -
Santa from Space –
In 2005, one of the Google Earth Community members called ‘ear1grey’ posted an amazing discovery. He found a huge picture (36 miles tall) of Santa. He made a nifty Google Earth file for kids so they could go find the Santa by following the red nose of Rudolf the reindeer. Download this file and then turn on the “Little world” in your “Temporary Places“. Look in the nose of Rudolf for Santa.
Don’t forget that Google Earth Blog is the best place to learn about the amazing things you can do with Google Earth. Save Google Earth Blog in your bookmarks, or better yet, use the RSS feed.
About Frank Taylor
Frank Taylor started the Google Earth Blog in July, 2005 shortly after Google Earth was first released. He has worked with 3D computer graphics and VR for many years and was very impressed with this exciting product. Frank completed a 5.5 year circumnavigation of the earth by sailboat in June 2015 which you can read about at Tahina Expedition, and is a licensed pilot, backpacker, diver, and photographer.