Hydrogen Spectrum

Isaac Newton discovered that when white light travels through a prism, a rainbow appears, this is called a spectrum. One is usually taught that the spectrum contains 7 colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. But in reality there are only 6 (indigo does not exist). The colors of the spectrum actually correspond to the different wavelengths of light. When the different wavelengths travel through the prism they bend at different angles. This is a …

…photon, which produces a wavelength (color). This happens when light from a continuous spectrum is shone through a cool gas and a prism: It is easily noticed that the pattern for the absorption and emission spectrums are the same. If the two are joined they form a continuous spectrum. The emission spectra shows the lines emitted, on the other hand in the absorption spectra, those wavelengths have been "absorbed" thus what remains is what shows.