Are red dwarfs (M dwarfs) known to be strong infrared sources? If so, why? Are they known to be surrounded by large amounts of dust? Do they typically flare?
Yes, red dwarfs are strong in the infra-red. This is because they are much cooler than our sun, and just like a red hot poker which has cooled from being yellow hot, their emissions are redder. It takes less energy to emit red light than to emit longer wavelengths, and still less energy to emit in the infra-red. Being much smaller than the sun and with less fusion taking place, red dwarfs have less energy.They are known to emit flares, sometimes quite large ones.