How Important are Stereoscopic Forensic Comparison Microscopes
There are so many microscopes out in the market today. Most of us would think of the common microscopes as the ones we usually see at school laboratories. Little did we know that there is now a wide range of specialty microscopes that cater to every particular need. One of the latest and most advanced is the stereoscopic forensic comparison microscope.
The stereoscopic forensic comparison microscope is a high-end specialty microscope that are specially used for forensic applications. They tend to be highly-used by the military and the police networks to compare bullets, analyze fingerprints, do forensic document examinations and analyze hair and fiber samples. These expensive microscopes can be found in crime laboratories all over specifically for law enforcement and private investigation. Schools that offer forensic science may also have the need for this type of microscope.
Forensic science is one of the exciting fields in law enforcement because of the many possibilities in crime busting. The use of the forensic comparison microscope in crime scene investigations is one of the most vital of all operations. It will determine if the crime will be solved or not. Aside from the functions it serves as stated above, this microscope may also help in ballistics, fire investigations, car theft investigations, and forensic entomology where even decomposed bodies may be studied for the cause of death.
Let us go more specific. What can a stereoscopic forensic comparison microscope see that other high-end and common microscopes cannot see? To be able to make conclusions in crime scene investigations, small and even minute evidences are submitted for careful studying. Evidences such as bullets and bullet casings, hair fibers, firing pins, carpet fibers, scratches on metal surfaces, paint chips, and even handwriting samples may be used as evidences and may yield to a lead. Types, twist angles and even diameters of wires may also serve useful.
Other important evidences may be taken from soil samples, grain structures of metal, platn parts, fingerprints and other trace evidences. These may look very ordinary but to an investigator, these are the most essential things that a forensic expert may need. The careful and discriminating study of these small objects can only be possible with the use of a stereoscopic forensic comparison microscope.
So what particular microscopes do we have in the market? Stereoscopic forensic comparison microscopes may be in high power or low power. There are even more special types like the metallurgical metallographic epiillumination forensic comparison microscopes. There are even accessories available that can be purchased separately like a 35mm film digital camera. This is a very important attachment because it enables the observer to have a record of important aspects of the specimen which may help in the solving of the crime.
These microscopes may be stereoscopic or a compound version that is high power. Both types are usually used by crime laboratories because of their different purposes. For comparing bullets, a low power stereoscopic comparison microscope may be used. With this type of microscope, fingerprints on surfaces of firing pins and riflings can be compared. You may also find if the bullet fired and the casing came from the same gun so a conclusion may be made. Large-sized evidences like wires, carpet, paint flakes and handwriting specimens may be viewed using this kind of microscope.
What is special about these types of microscopes is that one can compare between two different specimens by viewing both in just one field using a single ocular with 10x magnification. Another important function is its ability to make the image appear three-dimensional so that writing superimpositions, patchings, folds. Erasures and even crossed lines may appear distinctly.
The stereoscopic forensic comparison microscope is very important because a comparison between the evidence and an ordinary item same as the evidence may be compared and contrasted for any inconsistencies. Their characteristics may be viewed more clearly and manufacturers may also be traced to be able to trace down criminals or witnesses. This way, any discrepancy may be traced that may be connected in forgeries.
There are other people who will benefit from the use of these types of microscopes. Antique dealers are one of them where investigations of suspected documents like historical papers, money, jewelry and artworks. Stereoscopic forensic comparison microscopes may sound too technical and expensive, but the truth is it is a necessity that crime laboratories cannot do away with. Many crimes in the past have been solved with the help of these microscopes. Without these, criminals who committed heinous crimes may still be roaming the streets, still committing the same crimes.
