Locals probably already know the lore of on Christmas Eve.
But to recap for newbies — like me — it all started in 1955 with one fateful misprinted Sears newspaper advertisement. The ad included a phone number for kids to to call to talk to Santa. The misprinted number instead went to what today is known as NORAD, or the North American Aerospace Defense Command, in Colorado Springs.
NPR offers a of how Col. Harry Shoup answered the phone and caused a child to cry. He came around, though, and told the child Santa was on his way.
Tracking Santa became NORAD’s thing and today, more than 1,000 volunteers answer calls from children during those critical hours before Christmas.
This year, Broomfield’s Level 3 Communications inherited the service, as part of its . Level 3’s massive fiber network routes phone calls (and mobile and Internet-based calls) to Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs.
Check out our graphic on what happens when a child calls the Santa Tracker.
But if you just want to watch Santa’s route, there is an app for that — actually a few:
NORAD’s Santa Tracking app is available for these systems: , , .
There is also and (with “improved accuracy.”)
And on TV, CenturyLink has a Santa Tracker on Channel 1093.
Tamara Chuang: 303-954-1209, tchuang@denverpost.com or twitter.com/Gadgetress
