Completed and last edited on 2003-06-23

Thermography is a technology that actually allows us to see thermal energy or heat! If you saw the movie "Predator" or "Predator 2", you saw real infrared video footage! Thermography can be used in any circumstance where the identification of thermal patterns can be used to find something (such as a missing person) or diagnose a condition (such as a poor electrical connection). If you think about all the heat related activities in our lives, you will see the application possibilities are huge!

   
Visible photograph and two infrared thermograms, one with a rainbow palette and the other with an ironbow palette.
Note how the eyeglasses appear cool because the plastic lenses do not transmit IR energy at these wavelengths and  are cooler than the face.

Infrared thermography has been in the news recently because of its ability to detect and display a thermal map of peoples heads in a few seconds. Doing this can provide a screening function for SARS as one of the symptoms is a fever.

Thermal anomalies are an indicator of many modes of equipment failure.

Infrared thermal imaging is also used to locate victims in fires by firefighters. Black smoke makes finding your way through a burning building virtually impossible. Firefighters use infrared imaging to be able to see through the smoke to find and rescue trapped or disabled victims.

See the image gallery for more thermal images and applications.

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