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Transit searches have uncovered Earth-size planets orbiting so close to theirhost star that their surface should be molten, so-called lava planets. Wepresent idealized simulations of the atmosphere of lava planet K2-141b andcalculate the return flow of material via circulation in the magma ocean. Wethen compare how pure Na, SiO, or SiO$_2$ atmospheres would impact futureobservations. The more volatile Na atmosphere is thickest followed by SiO andSiO$_2$, as expected. Despite its low vapour pressure, we find that a SiO$_2$atmosphere is easier to observe via transit spectroscopy due to its greaterscale height near the day-night terminator and the planetary radial velocityand acceleration are very high, facilitating high dispersion spectroscopy. Thespecial geometry that arises from very small orbits allows for a wide range oflimb observations for K2-141b. After determining the magma ocean depth, weinfer that the ocean circulation required for SiO steady-state flow is only$10^{-4}$ m/s while the equivalent return flow for Na is several orders ofmagnitude greater. This suggests that a steady-state Na atmosphere cannot besustained and that the surface will evolve over time.

Modelling the atmosphere of lava planet K2-141b: implications for low and high resolution spectroscopy