Britannica
Sources used in this answer
Who discovered helium on Earth and how was it identified?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
noble gas
A road in Tokyo lined with neon signs.
Helium was first discovered on Earth in 1895 by the British chemist Sir William Ramsay.12
While helium had been detected spectroscopically in the Sun’s atmosphere as early as 1868 by French astronomer Pierre Janssen and English astronomer Joseph Norman Lockyer, it remained unknown on Earth for nearly three decades.12
Ramsay identified the element while investigating a gas released from the uranium-bearing mineral cleveite. By analyzing the spectrum of this gas, he observed a unique bright yellow line that matched the D spectral line previously identified in the Sun. This observation provided conclusive evidence that the element existed on Earth.23