- #1
terahertz
- 20
- 1
When you look at the emission/absorption spectrum of a single element, you can clearly see various emission/absorption lines, which are characteristic of that element. However, radiation from stars/galaxies contains spectra of many elements. How do astronomers make sense of this jumbled-up spectrum? In other words, how do they know that an absorption line, for instance, comes from this element and not that, especially since the spectra are doppler-shifted?