What is the hottest known lava world?
The hottest known rocky exoplanet is Kepler-1547 b, a lava world with an estimated equilibrium temperature of about 2913°C (5275°F): hot enough that its surface runs molten. Everything about Kepler-1547 b →
| # | World | Equilibrium temp | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| ★ 1 | Kepler-1547 b | 2913°C (5275°F) | 2,201 ly |
| 2 | Kepler-770 c | 2467°C (4472°F) | 3,035 ly |
| 3 | TOI-2260 b | 2336°C (4237°F) | 330 ly |
| 4 | Kepler-1531 b | 2264°C (4107°F) | 2,173 ly |
| 5 | HD 80653 b | 2165°C (3929°F) | 358 ly |
| 6 | K2-157 b | 2159°C (3918°F) | 973 ly |
| 7 | Kepler-990 c | 2113°C (3835°F) | 2,616 ly |
| 8 | Kepler-929 b | 2089°C (3792°F) | 4,277 ly |
| 9 | Kepler-1258 b | 2062°C (3743°F) | 2,340 ly |
| 10 | EPIC 220674823 b | 2051°C (3724°F) | 798 ly |
| 11 | TOI-561 b | 2046°C (3715°F) | 280 ly |
| 12 | Kepler-1323 b | 2018°C (3664°F) | 1,518 ly |
| 13 | K2-223 b | 1998°C (3628°F) | 648 ly |
| 14 | Kepler-78 b | 1950°C (3542°F) | 406 ly |
| 15 | K2-131 b | 1950°C (3542°F) | 497 ly |
| 16 | Kepler-1106 b | 1926°C (3499°F) | 3,557 ly |
| 17 | Kepler-10 b | 1915°C (3479°F) | 605 ly |
| 18 | Kepler-1340 b | 1901°C (3454°F) | 3,202 ly |
| 19 | Kepler-1087 b | 1888°C (3430°F) | 1,183 ly |
| 20 | TOI-1444 b | 1857°C (3374°F) | 409 ly |
| 21 | HD 137496 b | 1857°C (3374°F) | 507 ly |
| 22 | Kepler-1338 b | 1851°C (3364°F) | 2,457 ly |
| 23 | K2-141 b | 1830°C (3326°F) | 202 ly |
| 24 | Kepler-1589 b | 1829°C (3324°F) | 4,935 ly |
| 25 | Kepler-780 b | 1826°C (3319°F) | 1,819 ly |
Showing the top 25 of 1,284 that qualify.
This record is scoped to rocky worlds: a gas giant can run hotter, but it has no ground to melt. The temperature is the computed equilibrium temperature, disputed rows are excluded, and the winner's surface sits far above the melting point of rock, which is what makes it a lava world.
Nothing in our solar system comes close: Mercury's daytime side peaks near 430°C, well short of molten. What could unseat this record: an even hotter rocky world skimming closer to its star; ultra-short-period surveys turn up a few candidates a year.
What is the hottest known lava world?
The hottest known rocky exoplanet is Kepler-1547 b, a lava world with an estimated equilibrium temperature of about 2913°C (5275°F): hot enough that its surface runs molten.
What is a lava planet?
A rocky world orbiting close enough to its star that the surface itself melts. Kepler-1547 b sits at about 2913°C (5275°F), far above the melting point of silicate rock, so its dayside is an ocean of magma rather than solid ground.
Does a lava world have an atmosphere?
Of a sort, and nothing you could breathe. The magma ocean evaporates, so the atmosphere is made of vaporised rock: silicon monoxide, sodium, sometimes iron. On the night side that vapour condenses and falls as rock rain.
Why is the hottest rocky world ranked separately?
Because the hottest planet overall is a gas giant, and a gas giant has no surface to melt. Scoping this record to rocky worlds is what makes it about standing somewhere rather than about a temperature reading.
Keep exploring: all records · the worst places to visit · all rocky worlds