Japan reportedly discovered huge deposits
of rare earth minerals... under the seabed...
near the island of Minami-Tori-shima, also
known as Marcus Island... some 18-hundred
kilometers from the the country's mainland.
Over 16 million tons of it... according to
one research team -- adding that's enough
to meet "centuries of global demand."
The research was published on Tuesday in the
scientific journal Nature.
Rare earths include dozens of kinds of minerals
used in high-tech products, including electric
cars and smartphones.
The discovery of major deposits in Japanese
territory could help ease the world's dependence
on China, which accounts for nearly 90 percent
of rare earths production.
