Named in memory of the French scientist Pierre Bouguer (1698–1758), the founder of astronomical photometry. In 1720 he made some of the earliest measurements in astronomical photometry by comparing the apparent brightness of celestial objects to the light of a candle. In 1735 he followed de la Condamine to measure an arc of the meridian near the equator in Peru. During his stay he investigated the absorption of light in the atmosphere, which led to the formulation of “Bouguer’s absorption law”. (M 34346) _ _.