PRESENTATION OUTLINE
HOW ARE INFRARED WAVES CREATED?
- Infrared waves are created when objects are heated at a temperature that is not quite high enough to make the object glow
WAVE LENGTH OF INFRARED WAVES
- The wave length of an infrared wave is 700nm to 1mm.
- The wavelength is shorter than a microwave's but are longer than the red in visible light.
FREQUENCY OF INFRARED WAVES
- The frequency of an infrared wave is 430 THz - 300GHz
A possible danger of using infrared radiation is it produces more heat as the frequency gets higher. The heat can cause skin burns but this is usually very unlikely to happen.
An interesting fact about infrared radiation is by using infrared cameras, it gives people the ability to see objects in the dark.
HOW IS INFRARED RADIATION USED IN ASTRONOMY?
Astronomers use infrared radiation in their telescopes to penetrate through dusty regions that block off visible light so they use the infrared telescopes to observe the objects that have different temperatures .
Infrared telescopes made a breakthrough in the 1960s when frank low invented the germanium bolometer. Although they can be used on ground, scientists notice they work best in space since the water vapor in the earths atmosphere interferes.
The most significant infrared telescope project by NASA was called IRAS and was launched in 1983. The project revealed more information about other galaxies and also information about the center of the Milky Way. Currently there is a infrared telescope in space apart of the project WISE by nasa that was launched in 2009.
