<p>Three main reasons.</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Lots of things in the universe are cool, much cooler than the Sun. Therefore they emit most of their radiation in the infrared spectrum. Examples might include brown dwarfs, giant exoplanets, circumstellar discs.</p></li>
<li><p>Lots of things in the universe are distant and highly redshifted. Thus even if they emit their radiation at visible wavelengths, we receive it at infrared wavelengths.</p></li>
<li><p>Lots of things in the universe are hidden by dust, which effectively absorbs visible light. Dust is much more transparent to infrared radiation, so we can see beyond it. An example would be the centre of our Galaxy.</p></li>
</ol>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-16T18:04:03.780Z
I read someplace that infrared in particular is also used to detect exoplanets because it creates a better contrast between the intensity of the parent star and the exoplanet itself. How exactly?
Ambica Govind
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-16T19:02:02.680Z
Exoplanet's emit most of their intrinsic radiation in the infrared, whilst stars emit mostly in the visible. If you want to see the exoplanet, then look in the infrared. @AmbicaGovind
ProfRob
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-03-06T08:23:21.070Z
2016-03-06T08:23:21.070Z
ProfRob
<p>Why do we need to build telescopes that can view in the infrared? What exactly do we need to see in the infrared region? I know this seems like a really broad question but I'm just curious about it. </p>

<telescope>
Infrared Region Telescopes
Solenn
# Infrared Region Telescopes

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-03-06)

Why do we need to build telescopes that can view in the infrared? What exactly do we need to see in the infrared region? I know this seems like a really broad question but I'm just curious about it.

**Tags:** telescope

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2016-03-06. Score: 5 | Accepted answer

Three main reasons.

1. Lots of things in the universe are cool, much cooler than the Sun. Therefore they emit most of their radiation in the infrared spectrum. Examples might include brown dwarfs, giant exoplanets, circumstellar discs.
2. Lots of things in the universe are distant and highly redshifted. Thus even if they emit their radiation at visible wavelengths, we receive it at infrared wavelengths.
3. Lots of things in the universe are hidden by dust, which effectively absorbs visible light. Dust is much more transparent to infrared radiation, so we can see beyond it. An example would be the centre of our Galaxy.

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: I read someplace that infrared in particular is also used to detect exoplanets because it creates a better contrast between the intensity of the parent star and the exoplanet itself. How exactly?  
> **username_1**: Exoplanet's emit most of their intrinsic radiation in the infrared, whilst stars emit mostly in the visible. If you want to see the exoplanet, then look in the infrared. @AmbicaGovind  

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