*** Night Vision Glasses for SAR *** Date: Tue, 05 May 1998 01:36:21 EDT From: hcemasar@juno.com (Hendricks County EMA SAR) To: sar-l@listserv.islandnet.com Subject: Use of Nightvision Devices Del Morris and list: I won't go into extensive detail on how we use nightvision devices for SAR and use up everyones bandwidth. Del is free to contact us direct for the nitty-gritty details. We have experimented with two types of devices, a handheld night vision scope and night vision goggles. I won't get into brand names because everyone seems to have their favorite brands of any kind of gear on the list The scope was used in periodic sweeps during the search, looking for moving and stationary targets. The night vision goggles were used primarily as a safety device by a "point person" so the whole team would not walk off a cliff or something just risky while traveling at night. Searching was secondary for this person. We found the NVD's did not interfere with night vision,probably because they were Gen II and III devices. My military experience with Gen I devices was much different (too bright). The NV goggles worked very well. Combined with cat eyes and chem lite sticks to mark team members,we were able to move quickly,safely, and efficiently in the woods in moderate to difficult terrain in both rural and semi-wilderness settings. Flankers used the NV scopes in the manner mentioned before. We were able to locate all of the moving targets in the evaluations,but only about 80% of the stationary targets. Terrain and density of undergrowth were important factors when searching for stationary targets. Moving targets could be spotted at great distances because your eye is drawn to them. Stationary targets were located at ranges from 10 yards up to 200 yards. All in all,we liked using the devices,and will do so any time the law enforcement folks will loan them to us. We can search without them,but feel we have a chance at a higher POD and increased safety factor with them. We had no manual on how to use them in a SAR situation,so we had to improvise. There are enough variables to make it safe to say your results may differ from ours. If you don't want to buy one yet but can borrow one,I suggest doing so and see how it works for you. Michael Gilmore SAR Coordinator Hendricks County EMA Hendricks County (Indiana) Emergency Management Search and Rescue Team PO Box 681095 Indianapolis,IN 46268-7095 Telephone: (317) 745-9443 FAX: (317) 875-9993 E-Mail: hcemasar@juno.com Subject: Night Vision Glasses Date: Sun, 8 Sep 1996 21:54:41 -0400 From: Henry Santeford To: sar-l-d@islandnet.com I received the following from what I feel is a reliable source. Although D.O.G.S.-north doesn't use NVG, it may be of interest to someone out there. Sally Santeford D.O.G.S.-north ------ Forwarded Message Follows ------- So far, this is what I've found out. Yes, some Russian NVGs emit X-rays. A way to tell if a pair is emitting X-rays is to turn the goggles on in a darkened room. Place the eyepiece of the NVGs on a piece of unexposed X-ray film and make an exposure of 10-15 minutes. Develop the film. If you get an image where the eyepiece was, the NVGs are emitting X-rays. Clever way of doing it. I don't have any numbers on how much X-ray exposure is dangerous. I will try to find this out for you. Thank you. Any and all information is appreciated. Subject: Re: Night Vision Glasses Date: Sun, 08 Sep 1996 22:31:17 -0700 From: Amir Findling To: sar-l@islandnet.com Henry Santeford wrote: > > So far, this is what I've found out. Yes, some Russian NVGs emit > X-rays. A way to tell if a pair is emitting X-rays is to turn the > goggles on in a darkened room. Place the eyepiece of the NVGs on a > piece of unexposed X-ray film and make an exposure of 10-15 minutes. > Develop the film. f you get an image where the eyepiece was, the > NVGs are emitting X-rays. > > Clever way of doing it. > > I don't have any numbers on how much X-ray exposure is dangerous. > I will try to find this out for you. > > Thank you. Any and all information is appreciated. Hi Sally and all: I've used NV scopes when I was in the Israeli army. These were US made and I believe were safe, well I'm still here to talk about it without cancers or vision problems caused by the NV scopes (I wore thick glasses then too). The other side used Russian stuff and it didn't make them glow in the dark! Which doesn't really mean there was no X-ray emission. I have my doubts as for the usefulness of NV devices for SAR. When you turn on a light you create an attraction, the victim if able can give you a sign. Not so for NVGs. NVGs also cause loss of some night vision so they're not great for trompsing in the woods. Under canopy you need to illuminate with IR so why not use a portable floodlight with 500.000-1.000.000 candlepower and forget the NVGs. The only use I can see for NV devices is from a fixed observation point. Even then, last winter I have been the subject for a night certification of one of our dogs. I had one of these devices with me, hoping to be able to see the dog and handler at work. Conditions were good, partly cloudy night with half moon or more and some snow on the ground. Still I didn't feel I had an edge. In this case I couldn't use the floodlight of course but the naked eye or binoculars were more than adequate. -- Amir Findling, wnysrchdog@microagewny.com Buffalo NY NEW! NEW! NEW! Phone 716-691-7122; Pager 716-744-0894 Coordinator, Western New York SearchDogs, Inc. Vice Chairman, New York Federation of SAR Teams, Inc. and his partners Chip the SAR dog (Chocolate Labrador Retriever) Radar, SAR dog in training (Black Labrador Retriever) -------------------------