Tracking

Last updated July 20, 2025

Tracking may refer to:

Science and technology

Tracking, in computer graphics, in match moving (insertion of graphics into footage)
Tracking, composing music with music tracker software
Eye tracking, measuring the position of the eye relative to the head
Finger tracking, measuring the positions of the fingers
Optical motion tracking, or motion capture, recording the precise movements of objects or people
Position tracking, monitoring the location of a mechanical system in real-time by counting pulses; see Incremental encoder § Position tracking
Positional tracking, an essential component of augmented reality
Video tracking, locating an object in each frame of a video sequence
Mobile phone tracking, monitoring the physical location of a mobile phone
Internet tracking, analyzing online activity
Web visitor tracking, the analysis of visitor behavior on a website
Sleep tracking, monitoring sleeping experience (deep, REM, duration etc.)

Animal migration tracking, performed by attaching a tag to an animal
GPS animal tracking, to learn about the ecology of an area
Environmental tracking, a concept developed by the Environmental Investment Organisation to monitor climate change

Tracking (commercial airline flight), the means of tracking civil airline flights in real time
Package tracking, or package logging, the process of localizing shipping containers, mail and parcel post
Track and trace, a process of determining the current and past locations and other status of property in transit
Asset tracking, which provides status of objects of an inventory or mobile stock
Vehicle tracking system uses GPS to find out about movement and/or location of cars, trucks, and/or other vehicles

Tracking (particle physics), measuring the direction and magnitude of the momenta of charged particles
Tracking, a process of degradation in which tree-like carbonized patterns (electrical treeing) appear on an insulator
Tracking or Toe (automotive), the symmetric angle that each wheel makes with the long axis of a vehicle
Video tape tracking, alignment of the magnetic tape of a video recorder with the read head
Tracking, combining individual radar detections with a radar tracker
Tracking system, various methods used to monitor moving persons or objects, often remotely
Tracking transmitter, a device that broadcasts a radio signal that can be detected by a directional antenna
Target and missile tracking, elements of Go-Onto-Target systems in missile guidance
Tracking is also used, euphemistically, for surveillance or mass surveillance
Multitrack recording, a term commonly shortened to "tracking"

Tracking (dog), the act of a dog following a scent trail
Tracking (freeflying), in skydiving, the technique of moving horizontally while in freefall
Tracking (hunting), the art of learning about a place via animal trails and other environmental evidence
Tracking trial, a dog competition

Tracking (education), separating children into classes according to academic ability
Tracking (scouting), a scouting activity focused on observation, stalking, and following a trail
Tracking, typographers' term for letter-spacing, uniformly increasing or decreasing the space between all letters in a block of text
Tracking, matching or comparing the performance of a financial portfolio to a stock market index