Infrared astronomy

Infrared astronomy, study of astronomical objects through observations of the infrared radiation that they emit. Various types of celestial objects—including the planets of the solar system, stars, nebulae, and galaxies—give off energy at wavelengths in the infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum (i.e., from about one micrometre to one millimetre). The techniques of infrared astronomy enable investigators to examine many such objects that cannot otherwise be seen from the Earth because the light of optical wavelengths that they emit is blocked by intervening dust particles.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WRITTEN BY: The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
This article was most recently revised and updated by Lorraine Murray, Associate Editor.