According to Asahi Shimbun, one of Japan’s leading newspaper, a team of Japanese researchers has found a vast crust that is rich in rare and other important metals on the seabed. The deposit, found on an underwater mountain 350 km off Boso Peninsula in the Pacific Ocean, consists of iron, manganese and other rare metals such as platinum and cobalt.
The area is about 950 square kilometers. It was believed that waters much closer to the coast would be an unlikely home to cobalt-rich crust as organic substances from the land would accumulate on the seabed instead.
“There are many places with a similar topography in waters closer to the Japanese coast. Further research is needed” said Katsuhiko Suzuki, project leader for the Japanese research organization Jamstec, as quoted by Asahi Shimbun.