55 Pandora is an asteroid discovered in 1858.
The object was discovered by George Mary Searle on September 10, 1858, at the Dudley Observatory in Albany, New York. It became the 55th numbered asteroid, which explains the designation 55 Pandora. Its name refers to Pandora from Greek mythology.
55 Pandora is a main-belt asteroid, meaning it travels around the Sun in the broad region between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter where most known asteroids are found. It is not a moon of Saturn, despite sharing the name Pandora with Saturn’s satellite.
This distinction matters because “Pandora” is used for several unrelated astronomical objects. The asteroid is designated with a number, while Saturn’s moon is identified by its planetary system. Asteroid sizes and shapes are often estimated from observations, and 55 Pandora is generally described as a relatively large, elongated main-belt asteroid rather than a spherical planet.