Japan located rare earths about 1,850 kilometers off the coast of Minamitori Island, within Japan's exclusive economic zone. Researchers found the minerals in cores taken from the sea floor sediments. Logging the cores revealed and area of approximately 2,500 square kilometers containing rare earths. The study, published in the journal Nature in April 2018, says the deposit contains 16 million tons That is five times the amount of the rare earth elements ever mined since 1900. Enough yttrium to meet the global demand for 780 years, dysprosium for 730 years, europium for 620 years, and terbium for 420 years. Japan has to figure out how to extract the minerals from under the seabed four miles beneath the ocean surface.
