The full electromagnetic spectrum (Credit NASA's Imagine the Universe) The spectrum of the Sun appears as a continuous spectrum and is frequently represented as shown below This type of spectrum is called an emission spectrum because what you are seeing is the direct radiation emitted by the source In the case of the Sun, light is emittedThese lines make up the atomic emission spectrum of the atom being studied Each individual line represents a definite wavelength of light emitted by the excited atom The diffraction grating is a device which separates light into a spectrum of its individual wavelengths A prism behaves similarly Gratings are made by etching fine, parallel 2 Answers The Atomic Emission Spectra usefulness can be compared to the usefulness of a fingerprint the atomic emission spectra finger print makes a unique identifier Using this unique identifer, we have found out how hot the stars are, as well as what type of elements were they made of This led to the birth to modern astrophysics
Why Is Each Element S Emission Spectrum Unique Quora