The night vision equipment used by consumers today has its origins in the armed forces. The army also responsible for lots of other things like the world wide web, freeze dried food and the global positioning system just to name a few. But when it comes to night vision technology I’m not talking about the stuff that your children might play with, but the Real McCoy.

In the early days of warfare like today it was common for a operation to take place at night . The reason I think is very obvious. A unit of soldiers are able to keep the element of surprise until the last moment of attack. Now in the past this was not always possible as you can only see as much as your enemy can see so attacks were usually planned for clear moonlit nights which gave better night vision. But as you know this also hampered the element of surprise. The US Army have researched tirelessly for years researching many methods to enhance a soldiers vision at night and thanks to their advances the whole playing field of combat warfare has changed dramatically not to mention the many uses for this technology in the civilian world.

Night vision optics gather the available light by using electro magnetic radiation that is out of the range of the human eye. Making use of this available light allows night goggles, binoculars and scopes the ability to see in total darkness. At dusk and in low visibility conditions the night vision technology allows a soldier to see, maneuver and engage in combat.

Although this night vision scope technology is continually improving the two types commonly used are: image intensifiers and thermal imaging devices. Thermal devices work by looking at and understanding the differences in temperature in the direction they are pointed. The FLIR (Thermal Forward-Looking Infrared) detector option is often used on the armed forces vehicles and rescue helicopters.

Now image intensifiers work by magnifying available light 2-5000 times more than what the human eye can see. The intensified light makes use of phosphorous screen technology (similar to that used in a TV)enveloped in an eye piece to give the user as close to normal vision as possible. When a soldiers eyepiece is in place, the equipment will amplify available light allowing an image to be transmitted to the eyepiece giving the soldier an image of what he is looking at. The phosphorous monitor or screen is green in color. The human eye can recognize more levels of green than any other color in the visible spectrum eanabling the soldier to see better in the darkest conditions.

There are a high number magnifications available for different lenses as well as different conditions and ranges. Different things work for different conditions and situations and this is something the military had to deal with also. Although a soldier needs the best equipment possible other things like portability, weight and cost had to be taken into account. So by using a night vision binocular with image intensifiers only the weight was kept to a minimum and soldiers could carry out there missions in low light. This would ensure the US Army kept their cost down.

A couple of things you should know if you do get a set of night vision goggles is you will get a certain amount of tunnel vision because your peripheral vision is cut off within the eyepiece. By constantly moving you can counter this loss of judgment to a certain extent but judging distances can still be an effort at times. Another point to remember is that objects can seem larger or smaller than what they actually are. Usually a user’s vision can go from 20/20 to 20/25 but 20/25 is still better than no vision at all. The military have the option to work under the shroud of darkness, much like their enemies, allowing for a better chance to capture and defeat when necessary. FLIR’s really do help in locating any thermal energy whether it be human or animal in lots of different conditions and that is why the night goggles technology is used by security and rescue personal alike not to mention the outdoors man as well.