You can return the favor to Santa and your Elf on a Shelf today as the North American Aerospace Defense Command stands on watch for Christmas Eve. NORAD has been tracking Santa since 1955, when a child called its predecessor rather than the North Pole. Thanks to a website, an app, and hundreds of volunteers, things have gotten more high-tech since then. In a given year, volunteers receive over 130,000 calls to the NORAD Tracks Santa hotline as kids keep tabs on where he might go next. NORAD Director of Operations Major-General F. William Radiff says that with the help of radars worldwide and Rudolph's nose, it is a thrill to track Santa every year.

You can call 1-877-HI-NORAD to ask NORAD's live operators about Santa's location from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. local time. You can also visit the official NORAD Santa Tracker website.

Media courtesy of NORAD