Beer of the Week

The beer: Cat 5 Key Lime Lager

Brewed by: Fordham & Dominion Brewing Company, Dover, Delaware

Description (from the website): "Brewed with inspiration from our sister restaurant, Rams Head Southernmost, this Key lime lager is the perfect storm of light-bodied, refreshing, and delectable. The subtle Key lime flavor rushes over the pallet with a nice crisp finish from the Glacier and Perle hops."

Would I buy it again?: I was pretty sure I wasn't going to be a huge fan of this beer since I don't care for citrus, but you don't see fruit-flavored lagers too often, and the can was an odd shape, so I went for it anyway. It did not surprise me; this is a lager that tastes like lime. If you're the sort of person who can't drink a Corona without a lemon, I'm sure you'd like this a lot. I am not that sort of person, so I wouldn't go for it again.

Could Life Exist on Mini-Neptunes?

It would certainly make the search for life outside Earth a lot easier if life could exist on the class of planets astronomers have dubbed "Hycean" worlds. Hycean planets are otherwise known as mini-Neptunes because of their diameter (bigger than Earth, smaller than Neptune) and their make-up, having large hydrogen atmospheres. These mini-Neptunes don't actually have much more mass than the Earth.

According to a new study, scientists believe that Hycean planets may actually be a prime source for life. The reason is simple: These planets likely have oceans of liquid water underneath the hydrogen atmosphere, and we all know life loves liquid water. In addition, Hycean planets have proved to be quite common in the universe, and it is believed that detecting biosignatures in the atmospheres of these planets would actually be easier than on standard terrestrial worlds. The plan is to use the James Webb telescope (which is finally ready for launch) on a number of Hycean planets within 200 light-years of Earth, scanning them for molecules consistent with life. It wouldn't be definitive evidence, but it would be closer than we've come yet, and that would be big news.