[RoughDobermann]

From #50: "The seeker is sensitive enough to home in on airframe radiation, and the two-color sensitivity is designed to minimize vulnerability to flares.'

Right, the seeker on our Sidewinders and AMRAAMs are sensitive enough to acquire a target flying toward them from the heat produced by air friction against the leading edge of the wing, but that's still infrared. I assume that's what they mean by "airframe radiation."

[eno_]

Heated metal - e.g. the tungsten in a lamp filament - radiates in a particular spectrum. So I'd bet there is some filter that is tuned for hot aluminum in the seeker. It could be outside the IR spectrum, of course, otherwise lightbulbs would be IR and you would not see hot metals of any kind glow.

[gaspar]

Wasn't the old Redeye Missile based on infra-red homing? It was followed by the Stinger, which I recall [perhaps incorrectly] was heat-seeking.