Pandora is the habitable moon where humans encounter the Na’vi world in James Cameron’s 2009 film Avatar. The moon orbits the fictional gas giant Polyphemus in the Alpha Centauri star system.
Avatar uses the name Pandora as a deliberate allusion to Greek mythology, but its setting is science fiction rather than ancient legend. Human mining operations seek unobtanium, a valuable mineral, while scientists and soldiers interact with the moon’s ecosystem and indigenous Na’vi inhabitants.
The film stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, and Stephen Lang. It became a landmark for performance-capture acting, stereoscopic 3D presentation, and large-scale digital environments. Cameron later expanded the setting in sequels, including Avatar: The Way of Water.
The moon is sometimes mistakenly called a planet because characters speak of traveling to Pandora. Astronomically, it is a satellite orbiting Polyphemus.