Scientists are having a hard time solving why some lava-filled exoplanets are emitting extreme brightness. According to MIT's previous report, some of the super-bright super-Earths may not caused by the lava oceans on the planets' surfaces. 

Gizmo Posts explained that researchers might find it challenging to explain some of the planets are emitting extraordinary brightness. It was also explained that a planet's light is reflected from a nearby or host star, which is a property called "albedo."

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Zahra Essack, a planetary scientist of the Massachusetts Institute of Know-how's Division of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, lead the new study to analyze the phenomenon. The study's findings concluded that the exoplanets filled with lava should have a charcoal balls state revolving in the space.

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MIT added that the scientists discovered Earth-like exoplanets, which are reflecting 40% or 50% of their host star's light, emitting unusual brightness on their surface.

"You'd expect these lava planets to be sort of charcoal balls orbiting in space - very dark, not very bright at all," said Essack.

"So what makes them so bright?" added the scientist.

Essack and the team of scientists conducted experiments to check if the lava is the one causing the extreme light. However, they found out that it is not the one responsible. Here's the outcome of their experiment.

Why lava is not responsible for the extreme brightness

The scientists made volcanic glasses and a bunch of lava in their laboratory to measure the two materials' reflectivity. They considered the supplies as additional brightness of an exoplanet. First, Essack and other colleagues used basalt and feldspar, which are the two minerals that can be found across the Earth and other rocky planets orbiting in the Solar System.

They used a flashlight on several angles of their model to take detailed measurements. Syracuse College's Lava Challenge provided the basalt samples, which helped scientists carry out identical precise measurements of the material's reflectivity. Then, they measured the albedo of the combined elements, from purely molten lava to purely volcanic glass, and a spread of mixtures in between.

The results showed that the planet's albedo consisting of lava was fairly low. Essack said that the exoplanet's extreme brightness couldn't be explained currently. Zahra Essack explained that although Earth has a very reflective surface, it is still quite dark compared to the super-bright exoplanets.

You can check the update of Essack's study by keeping your tabs open here at TechTimes.

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Written by: Giuliano de Leon.

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