Puffy Venuses: The Mass–Radius Impact of Carbon-rich Atmospheres on Lava Worlds

Abstract

The recent advancements in exoplanet observations enable the potential detection of exo-Venuses, rocky planets with carbon-rich atmospheres. How extended these atmospheres can be, given high carbon abundances, has not been studied. To answer this, we present a model for a theoretical class of exoplanets—puffy Venuses—characterized by thick, carbon-dominated atmospheres in equilibrium with global magma oceans (MOs). Our model accounts for carbon and hydrogen partition between the atmosphere and the MO, as well as the C–H–O equilibrium chemistry throughout a semi-gray, radiative-convective atmosphere. We find that radius inflation by puffy Venus atmospheres is significant on small and irradiated planets: carbon content of 1200 ppm (or that of ordinary chondrites) can generate an atmosphere of ∼0.16–0.3 R⊕ for an Earth-mass planet with equilibrium temperatures of 1500–2000 K. We identify TOI-561 b as an especially promising puffy Venus candidate, whose underdensity could be attributed to a thick C-rich atmosphere. We also advocate for a puffy Venus interpretation of 55 Cancri e, where a recent JWST observation indicates the presence of a CO/CO2 atmosphere. Puffy Venuses may thus constitute a testable alternative interpretation for the interior structure of underdense low-mass exoplanets.