Minamitori Island

Minamitori Island Latest News

Japan will conduct test mining of rare-earth-rich mud from the deep seabed off Minamitori Island

About Minamitori Island

• It is also known as Marcus Island, is an isolated Japanese coral atoll in the northwestern Pacific Ocean.
• It is at the easternmost edge of Japan, the island is the first in Japan to see the sun rise.
• It lies 1,950 km southeast of central Tokyo.

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Topography and Formation of Minamitori Island

• It is the summit of a giant seamount rising from the seafloor located on the Marcus-Necker Ridge, and the only land of it in Japan on the Pacific Plate.
• Climate: It is in the transitional zone between tropical and subtropical climates, has an oceanic climate with an average annual temperature of around 25.6°C.
• Resources: Valuable marine mineral resources like rare-earth muds and cobalt-rich crust have been discovered in the waters surrounding the Minamitorishima Island.

What is Rare-earth mud?

• Rare-earth muds are pelagic muds made by accumulated remains of plankton in which a large amount of rare-earth is contained.
• It contains significant amounts of minerals such as neodymium and dysprosium, which are used in high-performance magnets for motors and power generators.
• It is distributed across the ocean floor as a thin layer and cannot be excavated deeply like coal. 

Source: Reuters