Wavelength: The peak-to-peak distance of a wave of a given frequency.
Water Vapor Signature: Water vapor in the atmosphere will absorb radiant energy in certain broad wavebands; this energy absorption is a function of both the amount of water vapor present, and the distance through the atmosphere that is being considered. While other spectral regions of water vapor absorptions exist (particulary in the NIR and MWIR regions), some of the strongest absorption bands exist between 5-7 microns.
White Hot: Infrared (‘thermal’) images are inherently grayscale images. Objects that give the strongest thermal signature can either be displayed as ‘black-hot’, meaning that the strongest thermal signature is displayed in black (or dark colors), or ‘white-hot’, meaning the strongest thermal signature would be displayed in white (or light colors).
Wien’s Law: The wavelength at any given temperature (for a blackbody) that emits the greatest amount of energy is given by Wien’s Law. This can be written as: λpeak = 2898/T
here λ has units of microns, and T is expressed in Kelvin.
WFOV: Acronym for Wide Field of View, this describes the lens position in a multi-field of view system that gives the widest field of view, and therefore, the lowest magnification.
