What Are Night Vision Goggles For?

Night vision goggles are perhaps one of the most practical inventions of the last century. They fill a need that mankind has had since it evolved sight – the need to see in the dark.

Of course, night vision goggles are far from the only means of seeing in the dark. Lights, torches and even fire serve the same function with much simpler technology… But where artificial light sources have problems is that though they let you see in the dark, its only in a limited area. Night vision goggles have no such limitation.

Instead of creating light, night vision goggles allow you to see in an expanded spectrum of light. All light is part of an electromagnetic spectrum and normally human vision is confined to a small section known as ‘visible light’. Night vision goggles come in a variety of forms, from simpler devices which simply allow the eye to gather more visible light, to devices which make use of the infra-red or electromagnetic spectrum for night vision.

They also have another significant benefit – the ability to see in the dark without making yourself the most visible thing in the night. You may be asking why this benefit of night vision goggles really matters, but it is one of the major reasons night vision goggles are becoming increasingly popular for private, government and commercial use.

Uses of night vision goggles:

1. Military operations; unsurprisingly, armies around the world have made effective use of night vision goggles in night-time operations. The military has driven development of night vision technology over the last century, creating the first generation of true night vision goggles during the Vietnam war. However, snipers in the US army and German tank drivers were using the simpler ‘night glass’ technology as far back as WW2.

2. Security; a less dramatic, but equally logical use of night vision goggles is in the security business. Many CCTV cameras incorporate some form of night vision, but for larger areas, security officers often make use of night vision goggles. This allows them to approach trespassers and criminals without alerting the miscreants to their approach. Many private users of night vision goggles also use them for this purpose.

3. Navigation; night vision goggles allow you to see much more clearly than a torch. Rather than a narrow beam of light, your entire environment can generally be seen clear as day. This is particularly useful in forest environments, where following overgrown paths can often be confusing via the narrow focus of torchlight. Aside from simply walking, night vision goggles allow people to drive off-road in hazardous terrain where headlights would provide an incomplete picture of the environment and are particularly useful for pilots. Pilots of helicopters and small aeroplanes make use of night vision goggles to make landing approaches in badly lit environments, or to see some of the terrain below them for better navigation.

4. Wildlife activities; a slightly more pleasant use of night vision goggles can be found in the wild. Nature enthusiasts are some of the main commercial users of the technology, using the goggles to navigate the wilderness in the dark and to see nocturnal wildlife. Without night vision goggles, this would usually be impossible – walking around with a torch is usually more than enough to scare off deer, rabbits, badgers and other animals.

5. Law enforcement; aside from the ability to chase down criminals in the dark, some forms of night vision goggles have an added benefit. Thermal imaging devices can often reveal an amazing insight into recent activity in an area, whether simply heat residue from footprints or even whether suspects have buried objects or even hidden them in walls. Even if an area seems pristine to the naked eye, thermal goggles can reveal clear signs of such activity.

Joel Boness is freelance consultant of Security Systems Integrator. While working on this he has gathered knowledge on Baggage Scanner,Safety equipment and security system.Visit: http://www.wi-ltd.com/ for more information and services.

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