The History of Infrared Technology - Night Becomes Light
If history is the result of one person being in the right place at the right time, then we can say that the history of infrared technology belongs to Sir William Herschel (1738-1822). Herschel, who was a German-born British astronomer, immigrated to England at the age of nineteen. In England, he made numerous discoveries, including one that saw light where others had simply seen darkness.
The Astronomer
Herschel was a major force in the field of astronomy. He discovered the planet Uranus and Titania and Oberon, two of the planet’s major moons. Additionally, he discovered two of Saturn’s moons. During the course of his career, he constructed over 400 telescopes.
Feeling the Light
Herschel’s primary contribution to science is his work in the area if infrared technology. As it is with so many scientific and technological discoveries, this one was in fact an accident.
It was on February 11, 1800 that Herschel was performing tests related to sunspots. He was testing filters through which he was considering viewing sunspots. In his laboratory, the scientist had a thermometer that he was using to measure the temperature of the room.
When he passed sunlight through a red filter, he was surprised to see that a little past the red spectrum a large quantity of heat was being produced. He discovered this when he held the thermometer just beyond the red light. Herschel had discovered infrared radiation.
Where There’s Heat There’s Light
With more experimentation, Herschel was able to conclude that the heat he had measured was related to invisible light. Herschel termed this part of the invisible spectrum “infrared.” Infrared, which means “below red,” related to the fact that the wavelengths of this type of light were longer than those of red, which had the lowest frequency of all visible light.
The Development of Infrared Technology
Herschel’s discovery in 1800 would eventually lead to innumerable inventions that would utilize infrared technology. In 1910, the first infrared camera was used with photographs being published in various magazines. Since that time the uses of infrared light and technology have grown. Here’s a list of some of its applications.
- Homing and tracking devices for the military
- Wireless communications
- Night vision goggles
- Remote temperature recording
- Weather forecasting
- Astronomy, including telescopes
- Thermal efficiency analysis
- Headphones
- Heating devices
- Car locking systems
- Computers
- TVs, VCRs, CD players and stereos
- Toys
- Home security systems
- Navigation systems
The Future
Infrared technology continues to be developed with its applications seemingly infinite. This technology can be used to enable people with disabilities to gain access to various forms of information and communication, to make appliances more efficient and to better enable interactive technology.
Of course its first practical application, which was in picture taking, is still used today as an infrared photographer may choose between using a film or digital camera. Sir William Herschel’s discovery, which occurred more than 200 years ago, is still being developed today.
About the Author:
When it comes to having fun Melissa Cameron has found that spending the day surfing with her three children and husband is all that she needs. When not at the beach enjoying the waves, Melissa works as a bookkeeper for a very busy medical practice. When she goes off on her own and does her own thing, she loves to engage in infrared photography, using the latest infrared technology. Melissa and her husband have two young boys that keep them very busy.
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