Final answer:
White light is a mixture of many colors that represents only a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum of solar radiation emitted by the Sun, including other types like UV rays and X-rays.
Step-by-step explanation:
The composition of white light consists of many colors, encompassing all the colors of the visible spectrum that we can detect with our eyes, such as red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet. These colors correspond to different wavelengths of light and, when combined, they form white light. This phenomenon is demonstrated when white light is passed through a prism, resulting in a spread of colors known as dispersion.
White light is only a portion of the total solar radiation emitted by the Sun. The electromagnetic spectrum includes not only visible light but also other types of radiation such as ultraviolet (UV) rays, infrared radiation, microwaves, radio waves, and X-rays, which all have different wavelengths and energies. The Sun emits this broad range of electromagnetic radiation, and what we typically refer to as sunlight contains all of these types, not just visible light.