fyi, mosquitos have terrible eyesight and only use it for the last few meters I believe. They do track carbon dioxide, living things breathing so a food source, and scents.
Woulda been hilarious if he looked to the left at the end going 'and there's nothing else in the woo-' and then there's just this huge red bear shaped blob coming at him.
I'm fascinated by the fact that heat can reflect off surfaces, as seen in the video. I always thought that, once radiation goes into the infrared spectrum, it's sort of "unmanageable" and just gets absorbed, but apparently you can take "heat" and just reflect it out a window from your home if you're tricky.
Nope, bounces pretty good. It's even so good that it's hard to take IR thermometer measurements of shiny objects. You end up taking the temperature of the reflection instead. This is also why you can turn on your TV around corners or bouncing it off the ceiling.
IDK if I'm asking the right person, but IR is a pretty wide range, right? Is 'heat' in that entire range, and is it possible to reflect stuff in the entire range?
Light is light. Radio waves can be reflected and that's below the IR spectrum. X-rays can be reflected and that's above visible. "Heat" produces light of all wavelengths from the microwave background radiation of ~4 Kelvin to beyond visible.
It DOES feel weird, doesn't it? But infrared radiation, which is what thermal goggles see, is electromagnetiv radiation, just like visible light, it behaves the same. It just so happens to be outside the wavelength area our eyes can see.
I REALLY wanted a night-vision device ever since I was a kid. I know I’d probably never use it, which is why I haven’t bought one yet but it just always seemed like such a cool spy tech item
I borrowed one for imaging my house for insulation problems, would love one like they've got here, but they're going to be insanely expensive and I don't really have anyway to justify that kind of expense on a toy!
They are very excellent for picking up your dog's poop when it's cold and miserable out and the dog decides to use the darkest part of the dog park to do its business in.
No, mylar blankets do not work if it is anywhere near you. The reality is that those blankets are so thin that basic human body heat emissions will warm the blanket within minutes to give away your position. How do I know this? This gif is from a youtube channel that does demonstrations. If you've thought of a way around it, they have shown how it won't work.
Thermal mass is the only solution. Dig a deep tunnel and hide in it. Even walking in snow will give away your trackable movements.
I've seen them work while hunkered down in the snow, but I think they may have layered them as well. There are always ways to defeat tech, but it does get harder and harder. I suppose the other option at this point is flares :)
/oh and I did say mylar works at first but your body heat will warm it quite quickly. That's the problem with most of these things, if it touches your body, then you will warm it. And the thinner the material, the faster it warms.
As I already said, yes, mylar can reflect heat but it takes nearly no time at all to warm the thin blanket so it is functionally useless. So if you're looking for something that will block thermal scopes for 5-10 seconds then it's fine to cover yourself with it. Hold it a foot or two away and you'll have a few minutes because your breath is enough to warm it. But then you have to create a larger structure to cover more angles, which creates a blank spot which also gives you away.
I'm not looking to block thermal scopes, I was mostly trying to assure people thermal blankets can still help in emergency situations and so "work" as intended.
I fully agree they don't work at all for thermal scopes. However for an emergency situation that is a good thing, rescuers can and have used thermal cameras to help locate lost people.
Glory? My head canon for the Predator is that they are dentists or rich guys from another system that are looking to get a safari/big game kill so they can lie to their friends. This is why they die whenever they meet someone with actual skill. Sure they can kill untrained primitives, wolves, and whatnot with their fancy tech; but an actual foe who sees what they are? They are toast!
They really are quite pathetic. Sure they're strong as heck and can be invisible, but a little girl killed one.
You just described doing something for "glory": So you can brag to your friends about the amazing, dangerous, difficult thing you did. And killing an almost invalid creature isn't going to be very "glorious".
ah, I see what you're saying! Yeah, lying can lead to glory. I guess I was thinking more in the second way, where they are basically killing an almost invalid creature then claiming it as a glorious battle. If you are invisible and then shove a spear through someone, it doesn't matter if they have a gun, they have no way to know you are there. It would be like some spec ops person fighting a random caveman. Not really glorious. But you do get to increase your k:d rations.
i got to play with night and thermal optics a while back. 1) its an absolute superpower to see at night and 2) if you don't have it, you're at a serious operational advantage compared to those who do.
I got to use a set 20 years ago in combat school and they were pretty neat. One thing no one warned me about was how it was monocular so I had zero depth perception and it was rather difficult walking in the woods that way.
are there reasonable consumer-grade ones? I go hiking, sometimes at night, and am very curious to learn what wildlife is around me that I otherwise cannot see
You can get a kinda decent thermal camera for less than €300. This is shaped like a compact camera, so no sights or closed opticals, just a small screen.
They are considered old school now but camcorders are surprisingly good at seeing in the dark. They project an infrared light which their optics easily pick up and display. In a combat scenario this would be horrible though. The infrared light would be a beacon to anyone with good optics.
GasBandit
Is... is he pooping?
yeahhedugit
https://media0.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1bTg0M2tyNDk1eXFrbWR0OTZkY3RjaHhyM3U0MTBiMzZqdHZiN3Z0bSZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/7ynfF1oCPRzDmjPcX5/200w.webp
willpostanything
this is how mosquito see me at night..
ihugpeople
fyi, mosquitos have terrible eyesight and only use it for the last few meters I believe. They do track carbon dioxide, living things breathing so a food source, and scents.
sfbiker
I only caught 2 product names. The Jerry YM is commercially available for only $3000:
https://coldharboursupply.com/en-us/products/jerry-ym-2-0-thermal-monocular
sfbiker
The Falcon 640 is discontinued, but cost $4000:
https://coldharboursupply.com/en-us/products/iray-rh25-pfalcon-640?_pos=1&_sid=f293f7f5a&_ss=r
L0rdinquisit0r
https://youtu.be/c_0s06ORTkY?t=49 9 year old full colour night vision, not allowed for civilians. - (they removed comments and view count)
PanNonOpticon
red flags: removed comments, the web page is void of specs, the comparison products aren't named.
haki23
Needs more slenderman/yeti surprise visitors
LizellenWalk10
Did we just become best friends? Yep
GreatHair
the first time in my life the red circle was actually meaningful and helpful +1!
L0rdinquisit0r
be useful in the fog and rain in a car.
myr14d
Woulda been hilarious if he looked to the left at the end going 'and there's nothing else in the woo-' and then there's just this huge red bear shaped blob coming at him.
LutraLazuli
My dad spoke of using what he termed "The Cyclopes" night vision goggles. The one he used was the light amplification one, not thermal.
Bigemedic
I had few chances to use NVGs in the military. If there's a bit of moon out you can see everything.
HeadJamistan
GrimleyGraves
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VokGd5zhGJ4
nevergoingtogiveyouupnevergoingtoletyoudown
One step closer...
Yellowchopsticks
I was expecting a cryptid jumpscare.
thewiggins
does the little mouse over there count?
alquin13
…anytime….
TheAmusedBouche
https://media2.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1dWNlMHZiMnpjeWNrY2dmdTc5bHV5ODJuNWRwZzNnN3NrcHI3enJwOSZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/xQvTA5AZ9CFpe/200w.webp
QuartzPoker
I have an IR spotlight monocular that would have seen him easily, but because it's a spotlight, anybody with anything that can see IR would see me too
Ree81
I'm fascinated by the fact that heat can reflect off surfaces, as seen in the video. I always thought that, once radiation goes into the infrared spectrum, it's sort of "unmanageable" and just gets absorbed, but apparently you can take "heat" and just reflect it out a window from your home if you're tricky.
Frederf
Nope, bounces pretty good. It's even so good that it's hard to take IR thermometer measurements of shiny objects. You end up taking the temperature of the reflection instead. This is also why you can turn on your TV around corners or bouncing it off the ceiling.
Ree81
IDK if I'm asking the right person, but IR is a pretty wide range, right? Is 'heat' in that entire range, and is it possible to reflect stuff in the entire range?
Frederf
Light is light. Radio waves can be reflected and that's below the IR spectrum. X-rays can be reflected and that's above visible. "Heat" produces light of all wavelengths from the microwave background radiation of ~4 Kelvin to beyond visible.
Ree81
So I can put a magnifying glass lens near something hot like a stove and it'd create an invisible heat beam, just like with the sun?
Frederf
If it's made of an IR transparent glass with a suitable index of refraction for that wavelength, yeah
discostewsm
It would have been so perfect right at the end to see some large, red, non-human silhouette charging him.
Nanoline
That's what I kept expecting to happen, was bracing for it right up until the end.
Voodrew
Its weird to me that the heat from the man reflects in pools of water.
ItsMoreComplicatedThanThis
It DOES feel weird, doesn't it? But infrared radiation, which is what thermal goggles see, is electromagnetiv radiation, just like visible light, it behaves the same. It just so happens to be outside the wavelength area our eyes can see.
meganical
I REALLY wanted a night-vision device ever since I was a kid. I know I’d probably never use it, which is why I haven’t bought one yet but it just always seemed like such a cool spy tech item
wadatahmydamie
I bought one for my kid for like $30. Obviously not a great model, but he could walk around in the dark
dashers
I borrowed one for imaging my house for insulation problems, would love one like they've got here, but they're going to be insanely expensive and I don't really have anyway to justify that kind of expense on a toy!
gobblinal
They are very excellent for picking up your dog's poop when it's cold and miserable out and the dog decides to use the darkest part of the dog park to do its business in.
TaiPan87
Maybe stop going to dog parks at night and in the snow. What are you, a creepy clown?
gobblinal
Canadian.
crazyspelling
https://media0.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1NnlsaW40MTZzNmtlZHRlZnlydHhpZjI3eXVvMjB6enlnbnp1YjZnYiZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/7vAfqJ6lZ51ZDOz6Q1/200w.webp
ihugpeople
Wait, I was assuming dog parks were mostly a place to take dogs to have fun, is the primary use a pooping ground and maybe a bit of exercise?
gobblinal
A LOT of exercise if you are lucky. And meeting new friends. And a pooping ground.
Davedavedavedavedave
https://media1.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1aTF0Nzl3Z2VtMmltcW50ZzB3MnZzajNheGxkYXh6Njc1bzE0bWRoYyZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/tt8Op0tbxT4FhNDyG4/200w.webp
ChareAndFlaff
BeaverOnFire
https://media1.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1MzQ5emZsZDB5bmlna3NzNHo2emtjNWFhbmdhbjJ2Nm5hNzhycDhrYiZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/OKqr7RYFNaZZC/200w.webp
SlyMrFox
Most downer ending of any tv show.
BeaverOnFire
But it was appropriate. 🤔
freshthrowaway1138
This is basically saying, "fuck your ghilly suit. fuck your camouflage. It's the 21st century and there is no hiding at night."
neptix
Ghilly suits actually help with thermal, but they're not perfect. Mylar film thermal blankets work pretty damn well though.
freshthrowaway1138
No, mylar blankets do not work if it is anywhere near you. The reality is that those blankets are so thin that basic human body heat emissions will warm the blanket within minutes to give away your position. How do I know this? This gif is from a youtube channel that does demonstrations. If you've thought of a way around it, they have shown how it won't work.
Thermal mass is the only solution. Dig a deep tunnel and hide in it. Even walking in snow will give away your trackable movements.
neptix
I've seen them work while hunkered down in the snow, but I think they may have layered them as well. There are always ways to defeat tech, but it does get harder and harder. I suppose the other option at this point is flares :)
freshthrowaway1138
Flares also do not work against thermal, though it does help with night vision.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLiWbFJ34d4
freshthrowaway1138
/oh and I did say mylar works at first but your body heat will warm it quite quickly. That's the problem with most of these things, if it touches your body, then you will warm it. And the thinner the material, the faster it warms.
ihugpeople
Yeah they won't block all thermal emissions, so still visible, but they do reflect a good bit of those emissions back to us and that is why they work.
freshthrowaway1138
"work"
As I already said, yes, mylar can reflect heat but it takes nearly no time at all to warm the thin blanket so it is functionally useless. So if you're looking for something that will block thermal scopes for 5-10 seconds then it's fine to cover yourself with it. Hold it a foot or two away and you'll have a few minutes because your breath is enough to warm it. But then you have to create a larger structure to cover more angles, which creates a blank spot which also gives you away.
ihugpeople
I'm not looking to block thermal scopes, I was mostly trying to assure people thermal blankets can still help in emergency situations and so "work" as intended.
I fully agree they don't work at all for thermal scopes. However for an emergency situation that is a good thing, rescuers can and have used thermal cameras to help locate lost people.
Kats8652
https://media3.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1cGl3c210cDJlN2h0dGJvcHgwN3A1aHQxaGg3NnNtOXIwMmMzY3ZxdiZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/11h1hxZvlj0W9q/200w.webp
haveanupvotegif
AvsFreak
modus0
Predator: "There is not glory in chasing this one."
freshthrowaway1138
Glory? My head canon for the Predator is that they are dentists or rich guys from another system that are looking to get a safari/big game kill so they can lie to their friends. This is why they die whenever they meet someone with actual skill. Sure they can kill untrained primitives, wolves, and whatnot with their fancy tech; but an actual foe who sees what they are? They are toast!
They really are quite pathetic. Sure they're strong as heck and can be invisible, but a little girl killed one.
modus0
You just described doing something for "glory": So you can brag to your friends about the amazing, dangerous, difficult thing you did. And killing an almost invalid creature isn't going to be very "glorious".
freshthrowaway1138
ah, I see what you're saying! Yeah, lying can lead to glory. I guess I was thinking more in the second way, where they are basically killing an almost invalid creature then claiming it as a glorious battle. If you are invisible and then shove a spear through someone, it doesn't matter if they have a gun, they have no way to know you are there. It would be like some spec ops person fighting a random caveman. Not really glorious. But you do get to increase your k:d rations.
horseWnoname
i got to play with night and thermal optics a while back. 1) its an absolute superpower to see at night and 2) if you don't have it, you're at a serious operational advantage compared to those who do.
ForceAwakenWasLame
Even Against the viet -cong?
Isorikk
That's why I only fight my wars during the day
BentwanJameson
I got to use a set 20 years ago in combat school and they were pretty neat. One thing no one warned me about was how it was monocular so I had zero depth perception and it was rather difficult walking in the woods that way.
ThatsRightImCrazyAllright
Optional hard mode for war 😂
notdavis
*operational disadvantage
horseWnoname
yep, that's what i meant. thx.
BeKindToOthers
are there reasonable consumer-grade ones? I go hiking, sometimes at night, and am very curious to learn what wildlife is around me that I otherwise cannot see
splungedude
You can get a kinda decent thermal camera for less than €300. This is shaped like a compact camera, so no sights or closed opticals, just a small screen.
TrumpRapesAndEatsChildren0002
Depends on how rich said 'consumer' is. Stuff's expensive if it's supposed to work. Thermal rifle scope ~$4k.
azgrak1
They are considered old school now but camcorders are surprisingly good at seeing in the dark. They project an infrared light which their optics easily pick up and display. In a combat scenario this would be horrible though. The infrared light would be a beacon to anyone with good optics.
honeybadgersRus
You can get them starting around $500 but it's kind of shit till you spend 1k+
If you drive to shop around for one
256x192 is the minimum functional baseline. Anything lower just shows hot blobs.
You need at least 30Hz for tracking moving wildlife.
Thermal Sensitivity needs to be <40mK.
Narrow angles cause tunnel vision. Prioritize wider angles for scanning campsite perimeters quickly
AGM Global Vision Taipan V2 Thermal Monocular - $695.00
Pulsar Axion Compact Thermal Monocular - $999.99
SpamYarBlockers
Hot blobs in your area want to meet you.