đLava
A lava planet is a type of terrestrial planet, with a surface mostly or entirely covered by molten lava. Situations where such planets could exist include a young terrestrial planet just after its formation, a planet that has recently suffered a large collision event, or a planet orbiting very close to its star, causing intense irradiation and tidal forces.
Details
Lava planets orbit extremely close to their parent star. In planets with eccentric orbits, the gravity from the nearby star distorts the planet periodically, with the resulting friction producing internal heat. This tidal heating melts rocks into magma, which then erupts through volcanoes.
Tidal heating is not the only factor shaping a lava planet. In addition to tidal heating from orbiting close to their parent star, the intense stellar irradiation can melt the surface crust directly into lava. The entire star-facing surface of a tidally locked planet can be left covered in a lava ocean while the nightside may have lava lakes, or even lava rain caused by the condensation of vaporised rock from the dayside.
The mass of the planet would also be a factor. The appearance of plate tectonics on terrestrial planets is related to planetary mass, with more massive planets than Earth expected to exhibit plate tectonics and thus more intense volcanic activity. Also, a Mega Earth may retain so much internal heat from its formation that a solid crust cannot form.
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