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The countdown clock to Christmas ticks forward and Santa’s preparations are in full swing.
His elves have helped him load the last gifts onto his sleigh at the North Pole and he is almost ready to go.
Santa will begin his journey at 10 am Irish time.
The man in red and his 12 reindeer will be out soon, and he gets up very early, they have a lot of ground to cover.
You and your family can follow your progress around the world on early Christmas Day by waking up before dawn and looking up at the sky.
The folks at NASA have been working hard on NORAD Santa Tracker to help you follow it around the world.
Check out the NORAD Santa tracker here.
And they’ve told us a little secret: Santa is using the bright light from the International Space Station (ISS).
Like Santa’s sleigh, the ISS is state-of-the-art machinery.
It shines as much in the night sky as the sun reflects off its metallic surface.
You should be able to see Santa’s sleigh starting tonight as he uses the ISS for cover during his big gift-giving trip.
And it will go fast, giving you plenty of viewing opportunities.
Santa’s sleigh will be set to ‘sprint’ mode, matching the speed of the ISS, which circles the world every 90 minutes in a furious orbit.
NASA has a guide here, so no matter where in the world you are, you can check when to observe the ISS and the sled in the sky.
The first sighting of Santa and his sleigh will occur around midnight.
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