# MIT develops 1 trillion FPS camera; it can actually see light moving **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 18, 2012, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mit-develops-1-trillion-fps-camera-it-can-actually-see-light-moving/613222 "2012-02-18T02:55:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2012, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mit-develops-1-trillion-fps-camera-it-can-actually-see-light-moving/613222/21 "2012-02-19T18:05:16Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > You have to figure there are some interesting apps in materials technology, biotech and so forth coming down the pike. Or porn… ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2012, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mit-develops-1-trillion-fps-camera-it-can-actually-see-light-moving/613222/22 "2012-02-19T18:09:36Z")
> [@DMark](#): > > Or porn… Yeah, if we can photograph a boom-chicka-wow-wow at quantum speeds maybe we’ll figure out what women really want! ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2012, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mit-develops-1-trillion-fps-camera-it-can-actually-see-light-moving/613222/23 "2012-02-19T18:36:16Z")
> [@DMark](#): > > Or porn… There oughtta be a joke in here somewhere about money shots. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2012, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mit-develops-1-trillion-fps-camera-it-can-actually-see-light-moving/613222/24 "2012-02-19T19:15:06Z")
There was a cable show last year that used a high speed camera to film various stunts and then showed the captured shots. Anything that was shot with a bullet had amazing details that were revealed frame by frame from the high speed camera. They also did some stunts with people getting hit or moving and they got some great frame stills of the body, skin, muscle etc. reacting to the impact. I’d love to see experiments where different gases combine in the air. That might be a good application for this new camera they are developing, ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2012, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mit-develops-1-trillion-fps-camera-it-can-actually-see-light-moving/613222/25 "2012-02-19T23:48:58Z")
> [@sevenwood](#): > > When you’re driving down the highway each of your car’s pistons is changing direction roughly 100 times per second. > > (That’s assuming that I’m understanding engine terminology correctly, that at cruising speed you engine is doing roughly 3000 RPM, and noting that each revolution involves two direction changes [up and down] for each piston.) Oh, I know lots of stuff happens at that speed, it’s just that my mind cannot truly imagine it. ---
**Author:** ![Mtgman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Mtgman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mtgman)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mit-develops-1-trillion-fps-camera-it-can-actually-see-light-moving/613222/26 "2012-02-20T16:50:55Z")
Please, please, please don’t tell the Mythbusters about this. Enjoy, Steven ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mit-develops-1-trillion-fps-camera-it-can-actually-see-light-moving/613222/27 "2012-02-20T16:59:23Z")
> [@Foggy](#): > > Yes! We will now know if Hans Sol really did shot first.😛 Or who shot Nice Guy Eddie. ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mit-develops-1-trillion-fps-camera-it-can-actually-see-light-moving/613222/28 "2012-02-20T17:04:26Z")
The only things that this camera can capture are things that are exactly repeatable for thousands of cycles. They explain it very carefully in the video. The camera only captures a single line line of pixels at a time and then the entire event has to be repeated to capture the next line. ---
**Author:** ![Mtgman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Mtgman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mtgman)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mit-develops-1-trillion-fps-camera-it-can-actually-see-light-moving/613222/29 "2012-02-20T18:05:15Z")
That’s a scaling problem. Odds are they’ll be able to build an array of these devices, all of which capture a line each, and then you have a full image all at once. Arrays of CMOS sensors in digital cameras work the same way. I can’t think of a physical reason an array of these devices couldn’t be built. Enjoy, Steven ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mit-develops-1-trillion-fps-camera-it-can-actually-see-light-moving/613222/30 "2012-02-20T22:05:21Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > There oughtta be a joke in here somewhere about money shots. Premature ejaculators can now be stars too. As for ST, that was Kirk’s fastest quickie ever. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mit-develops-1-trillion-fps-camera-it-can-actually-see-light-moving/613222.md?page=1)