Volunteers take phone calls from children asking where Santa is and when he will deliver presents to their house, during the annual NORAD Tracks Santa Operation, at the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, at Peterson Air Force Base, in Colorado Springs, Colo., Monday Dec. 24, 2012. Over a thousand volunteers at NORAD handle more than 100,000 thousand phone calls from children around the world every Christmas Eve, with NORAD continually projecting Santa's supposed progress delivering presents. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)
NORAD says record number of calls to track Santa
Volunteers take phone calls from children asking where Santa is and when he will deliver presents to their house, during the annual NORAD Tracks Santa Operation, at the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, at Peterson Air Force Base, in Colorado Springs, Colo., Monday Dec. 24, 2012. Over a thousand volunteers at NORAD handle more than 100,000 thousand phone calls from children around the world every Christmas Eve, with NORAD continually projecting Santa's supposed progress delivering presents. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)
By DAN ELLIOTT
Associated Press /
December 25, 2012
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‘‘Ohhhhhhh,’’ said an 8-year-old from Illinois, as if trying to digest a brand-new fact.
‘‘I'm going to be asleep by 4 o'clock,’’ said a child from Virginia.
‘‘Thank you so much for that information,’’ said a grateful mom from Michigan.
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CHRISTMAS EVE IN AFGHANISTAN: Five U.S. service personnel answered calls from Afghanistan for about 90 minutes through a conferencing hookup.
‘‘They had a great time,’’ said Novobilski, the program spokeswoman.
NORAD wanted to set up a call center in Afghanistan but that proved too complex, she said.
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HEY, MR. ELF: ‘‘Mr. Elf,’’ said one caller, ‘‘This is Adam, and I've been really good this year.’’
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FOR GEARHEADS: For people who want to know the specs of Santa’s sleigh, NORAD offers a trove of tidbits, including:
Weight at takeoff: 75,000 GD (gumdrops).
Propulsion: 9 RP (reindeer power).
Fuel: Hay, oats and carrots (for reindeer).
Emissions: Classified.
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Online:
Track Santa online at http://www.noradsanta.org
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Follow Dan Elliott at http://twitter.com/DanElliottAP
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