US Military Eyes the Glow of Fireflies

Posted by samzenpus on Saturday September 11, 2010 @01:48PM from the get-some-glowing dept.

GarryFre writes "According to the AP: 'Someday, the secrets of fireflies or glowing sea plankton could save an American soldier in battle, a Navy SEAL on a dive, or a military pilot landing after a mission. That's the hope behind a growing field of military-sponsored research into bioluminescence, a phenomenon that's under the microscope in laboratories around the country. This phenomenon is noteworthy because this produces light without wasting energy because it does not generate any heat. A possible military use of bio-luminescence would be creating biodegradable landing zone markers that helicopters can spot even as wind from their rotors kicks up dirt.'"

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Re:See through dirty wind by Anonymous Coward · 2010-09-11 15:20 · Score: 3, Informative

Also mentioned in TFA was that they want to modify the proteins to emit far red infrared. This spectrum of light has the capability to penetrate dust and smoke.
Re:See through dirty wind by RichiH · 2010-09-12 01:51 · Score: 3, Informative

Unless the enemy cheats and uses the US-exclusive infra-red spectrum.