Final answer:
The atomic emission spectrum of hydrogen is explained by the Bohr model as electrons moving between quantized energy levels, absorbing light to move to higher orbits and emitting light when moving to lower orbits, resulting in specific spectral lines.
Step-by-step explanation:
The atomic emission spectrum of hydrogen is produced according to the Bohr model through specific transitions of electrons between energy levels. When electrons in an atom absorb energy, they can move to higher energy levels (excited states); this process is illustrated by the Balmer and Lyman series, where an electron, absorbing a photon's energy, moves from a lower orbit to a higher one. Conversely, when an electron returns to a lower orbit from higher energy levels, it emits photons, hence producing the emission spectrum with specific wavelengths of light. The difference in energy between the higher and lower energy orbits determines the wavelength of the emitted light. Bohr's model also explains that as we move further away from the nucleus, the spacings between the energy levels become smaller, leading to more crowded energy levels at higher states and resulting in a quantized line spectrum rather than a continuous one.