Pandora is the moon of Saturn named after the mythological figure linked to the famous vessel.
Saturn’s Pandora is a small outer shepherd moon of the planet’s narrow F ring. Voyager 1 images helped confirm it as a distinct satellite in 1980, and its name was assigned in 1985. It shares the ring system with another mythologically named moon, Prometheus, which helps confine and shape the F ring through gravitational effects.
Pandora is irregularly shaped and heavily cratered. Its surface appearance and low density suggest a loosely packed internal structure rather than a compact, rocky sphere. Because it orbits near Saturn’s rings, it is studied as part of the complicated gravitational system that maintains ring structure.
Pandora is often confused with Prometheus because both are small shepherd moons near the F ring and both appear together in descriptions of Saturn’s ring dynamics. The names come from different figures in Greek mythology, however, and they identify separate satellites.