How to Use near-infrared in a Sentence

near-infrared

adjective
  • The stars, captured in near-infrared light, are known as Herbig-Haro 46/47 and are buried in a disk of gas and dust.
    — Julia Musto, Fox News, 8 Aug. 2023
  • Behind the robot, a screen shows near-infrared and 3D imaging side by side.
    — IEEE Spectrum, 21 May 2025
  • Plus, while red, blue, and near-infrared light therapy has been cleared by the FDA, other colors haven’t.
    — Victoria Song, The Verge, 7 Jan. 2025
  • This uses a near-infrared light of 830nm wavelength, positioned over the person’s thumb.
    — Andrew Williams, Forbes, 25 Mar. 2025
  • The craft is equipped with a pair of cameras that can photograph light in both the visible spectrum and in near-infrared wavelengths the human eye can’t see on its own.
    — Corinne Purtill, Los Angeles Times, 10 Oct. 2023
  • In contrast, the new method used a near-infrared laser with a peak power of approximately 10 gigawatts.
    — IEEE Spectrum, 7 Apr. 2023
  • Its 808 nm near-infrared light sends cold lasers into the skin to achieve this goal—hence no risk of heat damage, unlike most alternative options.
    — Justin Fenner, Robb Report, 12 May 2025
  • This mission will survey the sky in near-infrared light, which is a type of light that is invisible to the naked eye but that special instruments can detect.
    — Zhenbo Wang, Discover Magazine, 31 Dec. 2024
  • The near-infrared image also shows Saturn more as a hazy planet, instead of the usual striped(Opens in a new window) appearance.
    — Michael Kan, PCMAG, 30 June 2023
  • The James Webb Space Telescope has captured the activity of a pair of forming young stars in high-resolution near-infrared light.
    — Julia Musto, Fox News, 26 July 2023
  • Some newer machines, Tour told me, could be activated with an even weaker light, known as near-infrared.
    — Dhruv Khullar, The New Yorker, 13 June 2024
  • After traveling for many billions of years, light shifts into the near-infrared or infrared wavelengths, which are the wavelengths the JWST is designed to see.
    — Robert Lea, Space.com, 15 Jan. 2025
  • Observing in the near-infrared spectrum (wavelengths of light that are a bit longer than our eyes can detect), JWST revealed hundreds of newborn stars.
    — Phil Plait, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2023
  • Locating the Lyman break requires imaging with with a spectrograph, which can sample the full spectrum of near-infrared light.
    — Kevin Purdy, Ars Technica, 31 July 2024
  • Locating the Lyman break requires imaging with a spectrograph, which can sample the full spectrum of near-infrared light.
    — John Timmer, Ars Technica, 31 July 2024
  • That’s partly because its spectra in starlight cannot be seen in the optical wavelength, but only in the near-infrared or the ultraviolet.
    — Bruce Dorminey, Forbes, 20 Jan. 2025
  • The Hubble Space Telescope had photographed the same area, capturing brown, almost opaque appendages, but Webb’s near-infrared camera pierced the clouds and revealed stars within them.
    — Matthew Hutson, The New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2023
  • The swap expanded the telescope's vision into near-infrared wavelengths.
    — Josh Dinner, Space.com, 22 Apr. 2025
  • When completed, the ELT will be the world's largest optical and near-infrared observatory.
    — Robert Z. Pearlman, Space.com, 12 May 2025
  • The researchers extended the laser comb’s frequency range from the near-infrared region of the spectrum into the mid-infrared part—where molecules absorb light two to three times more strongly.
    — Starre Vartan, Scientific American, 12 May 2023
  • An image stitched together from multiple images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope in near-infrared light.
    — Georgina Torbet, Ars Technica, 10 June 2024
  • Binder’s cold laser therapy service is the use of specific wavelengths of red and near-infrared light to stimulate the body’s natural ability to heal.
    — Dasia Williams, Charlotte Observer, 12 July 2024
  • Although humans can't see it, artist Scott Kildall uses an infrared sensor to translate near-infrared light into sound.
    — Suzanne Nuyen, NPR, 4 June 2024
  • The reason is because the space telescope imaged the planet in near-infrared light, which can better capture dimmer objects compared to the visible light spectrum.
    — Michael Kan, PCMAG, 30 June 2023
  • Owen, now based at the University of Western Ontario, recently published a study using functional near-infrared spectroscopy, which shines a light through the skull.
    — Sarah Zhang, The Atlantic, 16 May 2025
  • The mask works by emitting red and near-infrared light, which penetrates deeply into the skin to stimulate collagen production and improve texture.
    — Sandra Rose Salathe, Flow Space, 26 Nov. 2024
  • The latest snapshot makes use of the Webb’s near-infrared camera, which captured gas, dust and molecules radiating at warmer temperatures.
    — Katrina Miller, New York Times, 19 Dec. 2023
  • The telescope observes wavelengths of light ranging from ultraviolet to near-infrared from Saturn.
    — Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Jan. 2024
  • The company makes lidar, a key ingredient in autonomous driving that uses near-infrared light to detect the shapes and distances of objects.
    — Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 3 May 2024
  • Developed over more than a decade, its suite of six optical filters enables astronomers to peer across the entire electromagnetic spectrum, from ultraviolet to near-infrared.
    — Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 23 June 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'near-infrared.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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