What Is Night Vision?
The technology with which people are able to see in dark is called night vision and due to advancements in technology, some modern night vision methods can be operated in complete darkness. Image intensifiers and thermal imaging are the technologies on which most night vision systems rely.
The systems which rely on the upper part of the infrared light spectrum which a human eye cannot see are called Thermal based night vision system. More infrared radiation is emitted by hot objects as compared to colder ones, so these systems scans the environment and detect the objects on these bases. After that the data is converted into an image which is visible to the viewer. Visible images are generated even in complete darkness as thermal base systems are not dependant on light sources.
However, image intensifiers operate when visible light is intensified. They are not useful in complete darkness as they require some light for their operation. But it is not a major problem if there is open and clear sky as the light provided by stars is sufficient enough. Dark environments are made visible to the viewer as image intensifiers simply amplify the light presented to the viewer.
All sorts of device like video cameras, binoculars and even telescopes can take help of night vision systems in order to view in dark environments. A night vision goggle is the most popular application of this technology. These can be operated in dark environments as they provide real-time images to the viewer.
Category: Technology