In astronomy, what numbered minor planet is named 55 Pandora?

The minor planet named Pandora is 55 Pandora.

55 Pandora is a large asteroid in the main asteroid belt, the region between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. It was discovered by the German astronomer George Mary Searle on 10 September 1858 at the Dudley Observatory in Albany, New York. Its name comes from Pandora, the figure in Greek mythology associated with the opening of a container holding the world’s evils.

The number 55 is its permanent minor-planet designation, assigned according to the order in which the object received a reliable orbit and was catalogued. It is not the same object as Saturn’s moon Pandora, which was discovered much later and shares the mythological name.

This distinction matters because astronomical names can be reused across different classes of objects. 55 Pandora is an asteroid, whereas Pandora is also a small moon of Saturn, orbiting near the planet’s F ring and helping shape that ring’s structure.