Voyager 1 images led to the discovery of Saturn’s moon Pandora in 1980.
Pandora was discovered from photographs taken by NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft during its Saturn encounter. The spacecraft reached the Saturn system in November 1980, and analysis of its images revealed several previously unknown small satellites, including Pandora. The moon was later studied through additional spacecraft observations.
Voyager 1 launched in 1977, but that launch year is not Pandora’s discovery year. Voyager 2 passed Saturn in 1981, after Voyager 1 had already found Pandora. This timeline is a common source of mix-ups when the two spacecraft are discussed together.
Pandora’s discovery mattered because it helped scientists understand Saturn’s narrow F ring. Along with Prometheus, it acts as a shepherd moon, gravitationally influencing particles in the ring. The discovery year therefore belongs both to the history of planetary exploration and to studies of ring dynamics.