We've Found Oceans Of Molten Lava And 'Rocky Rain' On The Most Extreme Planet Yet, Say Scientists
Nov 6, 2020,05:32am EST
Jamie CarterSenior Contributor
K2-141b, an Earth-size exoplanet with a surface, ocean and atmosphere all made from rock. JULIE ROUSSY, MCGILL GRAPHIC DESIGN AND GETTY IMAGES
Scientists have found an exoplanet of molten lava oceans where they forecast supersonic winds and “rocky rain.”
A fiery hot world that orbits its star so closely that a year takes less than seven hours, K2-141b is among the most extreme planets discovered thus far beyond the Solar System.
According to a study published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, scientists from McGill University, York University and the Indian Institute of Science Education, K2-141b has a surface, ocean and atmosphere all made up of the same thing—rock.
It’s thought that K2-141b is a place where rock is vaporized and falls as a mineral “rocky rain” that replenishes an ocean of molten lava.
More:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiecartereurope/2020/11/06/weve-found-oceans-of-molten-lava-and-rocky-rain-on-the-most-extreme-planet-yet-say-scientists/?sh=664a2e654825