Japan identifies large share of rare earths in deep-sea mud off remote island

TOKYO, July 24 : An analysis of rare earth-rich mud retrieved from the deep seabed off a remote Pacific Island earlier this year found medium and heavy rare earth elements accounted for about 54 per cent of the total rare earth content, Japan's government said on Friday.But it did not disclose the size of the content or the deposits, saying the data was insufficient due to the limited duration and geographic scope of sampling.The Japanese scientific drilling vessel, Chikyu, completed a month-long mission in February near Minamitori Island, about 1,900 km (1,200 miles) southeast of Tokyo, marking the world's first successful attempt to continuously lift rare-earth-bearing seabed mud from depths of around 6 km (4 miles).The project comes as Japan seeks to diversify critical mineral supplies