Investigations of the hydrogen vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) laser carried out in the Institute of Spectroscopy of the USSR Academy of Sciences are reviewed. Data for VUV TEA H
2and D
2lasers at gas pressure up to 2 atm and for low-pressure high-repetition rate hydrogen lasers axe presented. The upper limit quantum system efficiency for both gas dischaxge and

-beam excitation of H
2lasers is discussed. The possibility of obtaining CW operation of the H
2-VUV laser is also discussed.