Hydrogen spectral series

Groups of hydrogen spectral lines produced by electron transitions ending at the same principal energy level. The Lyman, Balmer, and Paschen series end at levels n = 1, 2, and 3, respectively.

Bohr model: A model of the atom in which electrons occupy discrete energy levels and emit or absorb photons when they change levels. Its quantized hydrogen energy levels provide the basic account of series transitions.
Lyman series: The hydrogen spectral series formed by transitions ending at principal energy level n = 1. It is the series with the largest transition energies and ultraviolet wavelengths.
Johann Balmer: A Swiss mathematician who discovered a formula describing the visible lines in hydrogen's spectrum in 1885. His empirical formula first captured the regularity of the visible hydrogen lines.
Astronomical spectroscopy: The analysis of astronomical objects through the wavelengths and profiles of their emitted or absorbed radiation. Hydrogen series lines identify and characterize stars, nebulae, and distant galaxies.
Helium spectrum: The set of emission and absorption lines produced by transitions among helium's atomic energy levels. Helium's two-electron structure produces a more complex spectrum than hydrogen's one-electron series.
Rydberg formula: A formula that calculates the wavelengths of spectral lines in hydrogen and hydrogen-like atoms from integer energy-level numbers. It predicts the wavelengths grouped into each hydrogen series.
Balmer series: The hydrogen spectral series formed by transitions ending at principal energy level n = 2. Its visible lines made hydrogen spectra accessible to early optical observation.
Johannes Rydberg: A Swedish physicist who developed a general formula for spectral lines across many elements. His formula unified hydrogen's separate line series mathematically.
H-alpha: The Balmer-alpha hydrogen line at about 656.3 nanometers, produced by transitions between n = 3 and n = 2. This bright red line is widely used to map ionized hydrogen in space.
Molecular spectrum: A spectrum containing transitions between molecular rotational, vibrational, and electronic states. Molecules produce band structures in addition to the discrete atomic-line pattern of hydrogen.

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