Pandora, one of Saturn’s moons, was discovered in 1980. Voyager 1 images revealed the satellite, and the discovery was reported by astronomers Bradford A. Smith and colleagues.
Pandora is a small inner moon of Saturn that acts as an outer shepherd satellite of the planet’s narrow F ring. Its gravitational influence helps shape and confine the ring, alongside the inner shepherd moon Prometheus.
The satellite’s name comes from Pandora of Greek mythology. It is not the same object as the asteroid 55 Pandora, which was discovered in the nineteenth century. The shared name can cause confusion when astronomy questions mention Pandora without specifying whether the object is a moon or an asteroid.
Voyager 1 reached the Saturn system in 1980, making that year especially important for discoveries of Saturnian satellites. The spacecraft’s images substantially expanded knowledge of the planet’s rings and moons.