In Saturn’s ring system, Pandora is classified as which kind of moon?

In Saturn’s ring system, Pandora is classified as a shepherd moon.

Pandora is a small moon of Saturn that helps shape the planet’s narrow F ring. It orbits outside the F ring, while the moon Prometheus orbits inside it. Their gravitational effects help confine and structure the ring, which is why they are called shepherd satellites or shepherd moons.

Voyager 1 images led to the discovery of Pandora in 1980. The moon is irregularly shaped and heavily cratered, and it is much smaller than Saturn’s major moons such as Titan, Rhea, and Enceladus. Its name comes from Pandora in Greek mythology, following a long astronomical tradition of naming moons after mythological figures.

“Moon” identifies Pandora’s status as a natural satellite, while “shepherd moon” describes its dynamical role in the ring system. It should not be confused with the asteroid 55 Pandora, which orbits the Sun in the main asteroid belt and has no role in Saturn’s rings.