Rangifer (constellation)

Rangifer was a small constellation between the constellations of Cassiopeia and Camelopardalis. It is also known as Tarandus. Both words mean "reindeer" in Latin. "Rangifer" is the generic name of the reindeer, and "tarandus" is the specific name.

Tarandus and the likewise-obsolete constellation of Custos Messium depicted above Camelopardalis.

History

The constellation Rangifer was created by the French astronomer Pierre Charles Le Monnier in 1736 to commemorate the expedition of Maupertuis to Lapland. Geodetical observations from the expedition proved Earth's oblateness. The constellation is no longer in use.

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