Sun's Spectrum?

Question

A star creates an absorbtion spectrum because when light given off by the hot solid, it passes through a cool gas. Then, how come when we look at our sun, it is a continuous spectrum? I asked my teacher this, and she didn't know why. She told me to look it up myself for extra credit, but i can't find it anywhere. Please answer ASAP. Thanks!

Answer 1

Here ya go!
A 2 minute search of the Google thing showed me this...
I hope you find it useful!


http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr162/lect/sun/spectrum.html

Clear Skies!
B

Answer 2

The sun, like all stars, is a blackbody radiator and as such produces a continuous spectrum. Stars produce emission spectra until something absorbs it (like our atmosphere). Unlike large cold molecular/dust clouds, out atmosphere is going to block a great deal of the spectrum - but not at the visible wavelengths. The points that are blocked will ve through specific atomic absorption producing tell tale spectral lines.

Answer 3

I think you have placed to much emphasis onto the idea of light passing through a cool gas. At the Sun, where the light originates, the surface temperature is about 10,000 degrees F. That certainly is not cool. As the light radiates outward it rapidly exits the Sun's influence and enters space where the temperatures begin rapidly dropping to almost absolute zero because of the lack of any gas molecules to retain or absorb heat. Protons of light in and of themselves do not carry or retain heat.

When the light rays descend onto the Earth, they enter the Earth's atmosphere and the molecules of gas they encounter there begin to diffuse the light somewhat, and most definitely strip off the harmful X Rays and Gamma Rays in the same way that one might shield personnel from radiation by immersing radio active materials deep in a vat of water. In the case of the Sun's rays, several miles of moving gas (our atmosphere) roughly equate to the 50 to 100 feet of liquid water used to capture some of the intense radiation and heat given off by radio active materials in a reactor. For the most part the parts of sun light that are most affected lie at the extreme ends of the light spectrum, and little change is noted in the central portion of the spectrum.

Regards,
Zah

Answer 4

No, i think of you're on the suitable song. the component is that the cooler floor of the sunlight facilitates partial recombining of electrons with nuclei in hydrogen and helium there, so there are some atoms and electron shells available to take up and transmit easy. It does not take too many to do the absorption; some %, consistent with danger.

Answer 5

the sun is burning all of those gases you are mentioning... just a suggestion