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Night Vision Devices -- The Ultimate in BackCountry Toys
Chuck Fitzgerald C2004. All Rights Reserved.
Many nights in the backcountry are far from dark. A bright moon
and a sky full of stars can throw off enough light to allow for
reading a book, but add cloud cover, mountains or trees and it
gets dark awfully fast. When you need to see in the dark, you
have two choices - you either turn on a light, or use one of the
many available night vision devices (NVD). The NVD could be the
ultimate backcountry toy.
Like choosing many other types of technology, choosing the
correct NVD is all about how you are going to use it. When most
people think of night vision capabilities, they think about spy
movies, the military or law enforcement - applications where it
is vital for the good guys to see without being seen by the bad
guys. A drop in pricing over the past few years has made a NVD
affordable for campers, hunters, hikers and a wide variety of
other outdoor enthusiasts. However, high-end devices used for
specialized purposes remain quite expensive.
There are two broad categories of NVD. Image Enhancement devices
collect small amounts of light and amplify them to the point
where the human eye can observe the object. Thermal Imaging
devices capture the high end of the infrared light spectrum which
is emitted as heat by objects. Image Enhancement devices will
provide a much crisper image with detail while Thermal Imaging
devices show regions of heat. Currently, five Generations of NVD
exist. Generations 0 and 1 are less expensive and typically
produce a poor image quality. Generations 2, 3 and 4 have
increasingly better image quality and an equally increasing price
to match.
Applications for NVD are actually quite diverse. They include but
are not limited to: military, law enforcement, hunting, wildlife
observation, surveillance, security, navigation, hidden-object
detection, spelunking and entertainment. NVD can be found on
helicopters, rifles, camcorders, cameras, boats..just about
anywhere. A new craze found at up-scale gatherings is called "A
Dinner in the Dark Party" where guests wear an NVD throughout
their dining experience.
Many outdoor enthusiasts are beginning to discover the wonderful
world that can be found after darkness falls in the backcountry.
If you like to camp, hike or hunt, chances are good an NVD will
be perfect for you. Use this information and you'll Get It Right
The First Time. Get Outdoors!
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About the author: Chuck Fitzgerald is Owner and President of
Arizona based BackCountry Toys, an online store providing
backcountry specialty gear and educational information for
outdoor enthusiasts. Visit www.BackCountryToys.com to receive
the free newsletter "FreshAir" or call (800) 316-9055.
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