False: The coronavirus can be detected using an infrared camera.

By: Lakshmi B
May 11 2020

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An infrared camera can only detect the body temperature of a person and not the coronavirus.According to Go Thermal Innovative Sensing Solutions, the 'FLIR A320 Temspscreen' infrared thermal imaging camera is helpful only to detect body temperature indicating the presence of a fever, which is one of the common symptoms in identifying coronavirus infection in a person The New York Times reported that thermometer gun which is equipped with an infrared sensor can quickly measure surface temperature without making any contact with a person. That device has been deployed at checkpoints across China in tollbooths, apartment complexes, hotels, grocery stores, train stations by government officials and private citizens to screen people with fevers to prevent the spread of the deadly coronavirus. An infrared camera is a non-contact device that detects infrared energy that a body emits which is invisible to the human eye and converts it into an electronic signal, then processed to produce a thermal image on a video monitor and perform temperature calculation. Hence, the claim stating that coronavirus can be detected using an infrared camera is false as it only measures the body temperature and not the virus itself. The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a lot of potentially dangerous misinformation. For reliable advice on COVID-19 including symptoms, prevention and available treatment, please refer to the World Health Organisation or your national healthcare authority.