Glow of emission lines vs. hot objects

[taoke]

"glow" of emission lines vs. hot objects

I was wondering how the mechanisms differ between the following two scenarios:

A. The glow of emission lines

(I think it has to do with the Bohr atom)

B. The glow of hot objects

(I think it has to do with Blackbody radiation)

 

[HallsofIvy]

They are really pretty much the same. The difference is that "objects" are typically made of many different elements which "glow" at many different frequencies. If you heat, say, pure salt, you will see primarily the emission lines for sodium.