You don’t need fire to make them work. You can even use one without electricity. Plus, you can improvise if you don’t have a professional signal mirror on hand. Hold on to the mirror and keep your hand outstretched in front of you for accuracy. Then begin flashing the light to your target. Creating a Signal Signaling is an important skill that everyone must learn. Emergencies can happen anytime and anywhere. That rafter isn't alone in owing his life to a signal mirror. Over the decades, there have been many other people stranded in dire situations in the wilderness or at sea whose lives have been saved by this simple device. Floats: Some better signal mirrors will float. This feature is a must-have on mirrors in boat and airplane survival kits. If it’s in your wallet as part of an EDC kit, obviously the floating feature isn’t as important. *You can always attach a floating bobber to a signal mirror’s lanyard hole to make it float.

When improvising a mirror, hold up your thumb and index finger in a V-shape and angle your reflective material. It ensures that most of the light goes through the V as this will help find the bead of light. You want one that's big enough to comfortably fit in your hands — a 2-by-3-inch (5.1-by-7.6-centimeter) size is good — with a small hole in the middle that enables you to see where you're focusing your signal [sources: McDougall, Nester]. While an ordinary reflective mirror can also be used as a signaling device, it cannot be precisely aimed and ‘flashed’ at a target like a purpose-built signaling mirror. Henry Christopher Mance (1840–1926), of the British Government Persian Gulf Telegraph Department, developed the first widely accepted heliograph about 1869 [2] [22] [23] while stationed at Karachi, in the Bombay Presidency in British India. Mance was familiar with heliotropes by their use for the Great Trigonometrical Survey of India. [10] The Mance Heliograph was operated easily by one man, and since it weighed about seven pounds, the operator could readily carry the device and its tripod. The British Army tested the heliograph in India at a range of 35 miles with favorable results. [24] During the Jowaki Afridi expedition sent by the British-Indian government in 1877, the heliograph was first tested in war. [25] [26] Fig. 4: US Signal Service heliograph, 1898If you're improvising your mirror, hold up two fingers in a V shape and angle the mirror (or credit card or compact) so that most of the light passes through the V. This will help you to find the bead of light.

The signal flash produced from a GLASS mirror is far brighter and more effective than a plastic signal mirror. Facing the sun, place the mirror next to your eye—or, if it has a sight, hold the mirror right up to your eye to peep through the hole—and then look toward the sun. Today, signal mirrors are still recommended to military personnel and adventurers alike as a device to always have on hand. IPA Freshman's science fair project". Island Pacific Academy. 3 September 2015 . Retrieved 6 September 2015. If you happen to have a whistle on you (or you’re blessed with the ability to whistle loudly with your fingers), proceed with these steps: Three long whistle blasts (which is “S”), followed by three short blasts (“O”), and then three long whistles once more (“S”).At the start, we mentioned that SOS in Morse code is three dots for the first “S," three dashes for the “O," followed by three more dots for the second "S." We presented quite a lot of information, but as always: if you have any questions let us know and we would be happy to help. Our research and testing settled on the Survival Signal Mirror as the best option given its functionality, durability, versatility, and value. Your specific situation may call for a different solution. If you need rescue, flash your mirror three times. Three is considered a universal distress signal. Spread open two fingers to create a V and guide the reflected light between them. Keep a small portion of the reflection visible on your fingers so you know it’s there. A heliograph (from Ancient Greek ἥλιος ( hḗlios)'sun',and γράφειν ( gráphein)'to write') is a solar telegraph [1] system that signals by flashes of sunlight (generally using Morse code) reflected by a mirror. The flashes are produced by momentarily pivoting the mirror, or by interrupting the beam with a shutter. [2] The heliograph was a simple but effective instrument for instantaneous optical communication over long distances during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. [2] Its main uses were military, survey and forest protection work. Heliographs were standard issue in the British and Australian armies until the 1960s, and were used by the Pakistani army as late as 1975. [3] Description [ edit ] Fig. 2: German heliograph made by R. Fuess in Berlin (on display at the Museum of Communication in Frankfurt)