Pandora is the Saturn moon discovered in 1980 that acts as a shepherd satellite of the F ring.
Pandora was discovered in photographs taken by the Voyager 1 spacecraft during its encounter with Saturn. It is a small, irregular moon located near Saturn’s F ring. Together with the moon Prometheus, Pandora helps gravitationally influence and confine the narrow ring structure, which is why both are called shepherd satellites.
The moon’s name comes from Pandora in Greek mythology. Prometheus, the other F-ring shepherd, is likewise named after a mythological figure associated with fire and humanity. This naming creates a thematic connection between the two moons, although the astronomical objects are not literal versions of the mythic characters.
Pandora is not Saturn’s largest moon and is far smaller than Titan or Rhea. It is also different from Epimetheus and Janus, which are famous for their co-orbital relationship. The clearest identifying fact is Pandora’s position beside the F ring and its discovery in Voyager imagery.