A space-age helmet is giving firefighters the ability to see through smoke and even walls as they make their way through burning buildings. The 10.6-pound CairnsIRIS system mounts on a standard fire helmet. A heat sensor on the side of the helmet feeds data to a waistband power pack and up to the viewer, whose eyes are covered by an odd-shaped video display. Looking into the flip-down binocular lenses, the wearer can see anything that varies from air temperature.
People give off a white glow.
Cold water looks like gray lava, a 2-inch flame on a gas stove looks 2 feet tall as its heat rises. Chilly air spreads out like dirt from a ceiling vent. The helmet even lets the user see through the side of a propane tank to gauge the level of liquid gas inside because it's cooler than the metal. At the house, firefighters were blinded by the smoke. The helmet wearer entered and quickly determined that no one was home.