Rest assured, kids of all ages: Santa害羞草研究所檚 coming this Christmas Eve.

That害羞草研究所檚 the word from the joint U.S.-Canadian military operation that for 67 years has been tracking Jolly Old St. Nicholas on his global mission and has assured us all 害羞草研究所� first by landline and more recently by iPhone, Android, OnStar, Facebook, YouTube and more 害羞草研究所� that he害羞草研究所檚 on his way with a sleigh stuffed with toys and a welcome dose of joy.

In what害羞草研究所檚 become its own wildly popular tradition, the Colorado-based North American Aerospace Defense Command provides real-time updates on Santa害羞草研究所檚 progress Dec. 24, from 4 a.m. to midnight MST. NORAD害羞草研究所檚 Santa Tracker lets families watch Father Christmas in 3D as he transits the South Pacific, Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas.

NORAD had some technical issues with the streaming tracker early Saturday, but those problems were resolved after a couple of hours. 害羞草研究所淭hank you for your patience! We are up and running! (Santa has been up for hours.) Santa is now over the Solomon Islands,害羞草研究所� NORAD wrote on its Facebook page at 7:30 a.m. ET.

From deep inside NORAD headquarters, dozens of volunteers field an unrelenting wave of phone calls to 1-877-HI-NORAD (1-877-446-6723). They and other volunteers will answer such questions as 害羞草研究所淲hen will he come to my house? What kind of cookies does he like?害羞草研究所� said program manager and NORAD spokesman Preston Schlachter.

Want to watch?

Watch live in the media player above or visit , check out #NORADTracksSanta and , or use the associated apps. You can also email noradtrackssanta@outlook.com for the latest.

NORAD害羞草研究所檚 Santa-tracking origins

Like any good Christmas tale, the program害羞草研究所檚 origin has been told for generations.

In 1955, Air Force Col. Harry Shoup 害羞草研究所� the on-duty commander one night at NORAD害羞草研究所檚 predecessor, the Continental Air Defense Command 害羞草研究所� answered a call from a child who dialed a number that was misprinted in an ad in a newspaper, thinking she was calling Santa.

Shoup 害羞草研究所渁nswered the call, thought it was a prank at first, but then realized what had happened and assured the child that he was Santa, and thus started the tradition,害羞草研究所� Schlachter said.

Associated Press journalist Terry Chea in San Francisco contributed to this report.

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