Forward-looking infrared (FLIR) cameras, typically used on military and civilian aircraft, use a thermographic camera that senses infrared radiation.
A Thales Damocles FLIR targeting pod
FLIR imagery from a U.S. Navy helicopter: Alleged drug traffickers are being arrested by Colombian naval forces.
A FLIR pod on a French Air Force helicopter
A FLIR system on a U.S. Air Force helicopter during search and rescue operation
A thermographic camera is a device that creates an image using infrared (IR) radiation, similar to a normal camera that forms an image using visible light. Instead of the 400–700 nanometre (nm) range of the visible light camera, infrared cameras are sensitive to wavelengths from about 1,000 nm to about 14,000 nm (14 μm). The practice of capturing and analyzing the data they provide is called thermography.
Image of a Pomeranian taken in mid-infrared ("thermal") light (false-color)
A thermal image showing temperature variation in a hot air balloon
Thermographic image of a ring-tailed lemur
Hot hooves indicate a sick cow.