Peterson Air Force base in Colorado Springs is getting ready for its annual holiday mission - tracking Santa's storybook sleigh ride around the world.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command has been working for weeks to tackle the one-day mission.
Kilometres of wire, dozens of computers and 157 telephone lines will greet hundreds of volunteers on Thursday, The (Colorado Springs) Gazette reported (http://bit.ly/1PjRGGa).
Volunteers will be answering calls from an estimated 125,000 children around the globe, including Australia and New Zealand, said NORAD's Stacey Knott, who has organised the Santa tracking for three years.
The call centre in a training building will be staffed for 23 hours on Christmas Eve.
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Volunteers will also share Santa's location on Facebook and Twitter.
Last year, Santa got 1.6 million Facebook likes.
NORAD's 60th year of tracking Santa involves more than the military.
The program is underwritten by contractors who pay for the phones, the computers and the website.
First lady Michelle Obama is expected to volunteer, with calls forwarded to her on Christmas Eve.
