Caption

Serpens Nebula HBC 672, imaged at near-infrared wavelengths by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. The Serpens Nebula is a stellar nursery that is nearly 1,300 light-years away from Earth. HBC 672, is a Sun-like star surrounded by a debris ring of dust, rock, and ice. A young star's brilliant light is being blocked by this debris ring causing a distinctive shadow. The feature, visible at upper right, is nicknamed the Bat Shadow and spans approximately 200 times the length of our solar system. The presence of a shadow means that the disk is being viewed nearly edge-on. A similar-looking shadow phenomenon emanates from another young star at upper left. At lower right, what appears to be a void is likely a part of a foreground cloud. Light from the red, double star inside the void is partially blocked by this cloud.