earths

Earth’s water is running out of oxygen. And that’s a problem

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We tend to relate oxygen with the air we breathebut the reality is that it is also an essential component of all the waters on the planet, from oceans to rivers and lakes. That is why the call just made by a team of scientists from the University of California San Diego is so important. In a recently published study, they show that the dissolved oxygen in all these waters is plummeting and that this could have disastrous consequences. For this reason, they point out that it would be advisable to establish aquatic oxygen as one of the factors that can become points of no return in the decline of our planet. The pace is alarming. According to these scientiststhe rate at which aquatic oxygen levels are falling is very alarming. It is due to several reasons. For a start, may be a consequence of excess nutrients known as eutrophication. Fertilizers, for example, are very rich in nitrogen, which is one of the most important nutrients for algae growth. When these proliferate too much, they cloud the water and prevent sunlight from adequately reaching aquatic photosynthetic organisms. This is the first cause of the decrease in aquatic oxygen levels. On the other hand, when these algae die they fall to the bottom and are degraded by bacteria that consume a lot of oxygen. There we will have even less. On the other hand, hot water dissolves less oxygen than cold water. And we already know how much the planet’s water is warming lately. Finally, changes in water movement and ventilationfor example by the construction of dams, can hinder the distribution of oxygen in the water. The consequences. Decreased aquatic oxygen levels are detrimental for many reasons. To begin with, living beings that breathe directly in water can clearly suffer the consequences. This ranges from microscopic organisms to fish and the sharks. However, even marine mammals, which come to the surface to breathe, suffer the consequences of this deoxygenation, as their prey relocates and their habitats are damaged. On the other hand, many chemical processes that help regulate the climate on Earth suffer the effects of aquatic deoxygenation. This is the case of the carbon cycle, for example. The nine planetary limits. The planetary limits are nine scenarios with thresholds within which humanity can continue to develop without there being an imminent danger to the planet. Once they are exceeded, it is assumed that the point of no return The deterioration of the Earth is very close. These limits are established for climate change, biosphere integrity, land use change, freshwater use, biogeochemical fluxes, ocean acidification, stratospheric ozone layeratmospheric aerosol loading and new entities, formerly known as chemical pollution. For each of these contexts, there is an established limit that should not be exceeded. However, according to the last review of their status, The threshold has already been crossed in seven of them. Aquatic oxygen as the tenth planetary limit. The authors of the study just published point out that aquatic oxygen should also be considered a planetary limit. Their levels are declining dangerously and action must be taken on the matter as soon as possible, as they affect ecosystems and the climate very directly. If this “title” were given, perhaps we would be more aware of its evolution and we could take action on the matter in time. For now, it’s just a proposal. However, given what we have seen, it is something that should be taken very seriously. We talk about forests as the lungs of the planet, but we cannot forget the aquatic lung. After all, that is where life first emerged. Images | Magnificent In Xataka | Three days and above the 95th percentile: AEMET’s golden rule for declaring a “heat wave” in Spain

2,200 years ago, the Earth’s magnetic field collapsed. Some wine amphorae recorded it with unprecedented precision

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Finding some ceramic at a site is a fairly common occurrence, but in archeology the context is almost everything: this way you can discover from the Roman legions took away their vices there where they were going 1,800 years ago they were already used as piggy banks. Or even strange movements of the Earth. It’s what has happened in three sites in Jerusalem, where 24 pieces of ceramic have functioned as a kind of millennia-old compass record. The discovery. A research team from Tel Aviv University, Ariel University and the University of California, San Diego has managed to obtain geomagnetic information from 17 handles of wine amphorae from the island of Rhodes and seven jugs made there in Jerusalem, more specifically from the sites of the City of David, the Jewish Quarter and the Givati ​​parking lot. What makes them special are two things: on all of them the names of the potter and the supervisor of that year’s production appeared. There is another surprising fact from the analysis of the pieces: reveal that between the years 206 and 156-155 BC the Earth’s magnetic field lost more than 30% of its intensity. The scientific explanation. When clay is fired at high temperatures, the iron-containing minerals it contains are oriented according to the magnetic field that exists at that moment and when they cool, they stay that way forever… or until they are heated above the Curie temperature. If they are heated some time later in a laboratory under certain controlled conditions, it is possible to obtain the signal and intensity of the magnetic field from the time of manufacture, which is known as “archaeointensity analysis.” Why is it important. Because the ceramic pieces revealed that the magnetic field weakened much faster than estimated with current models. On the other hand, because magnetism offers an alternative to radiocarbon to date ancient objects and structures with a precision that carbon cannot always offer. Already there were studies that they affirmed it, but this confirms it for the Hellenistic era. Context. The starting ceramics are stamped handles of amphorae made on the island of Rhodes between the 3rd and 1st centuries BC. In the Hellenistic period, these amphorae circulated throughout the eastern Mediterranean, loaded with wine or oil. Greek amphorae they used to have engraving the name of the potter and the annual official who supervised production, called the eponym. This administrative custom turns the Rhodes amphorae into a chronological instrument of incredible precision: it is possible to date pieces with a time deviation of less than one year, something that is rarely seen in archaeology. In detail. Collaterally, this finding also has implications for the acra fortressa building that the Seleucid king Antiochus IV ordered to be built around 167 BC to control the city during the time of the Maccabees and whose exact location has been one of the most lively debates in archeology in Jerusalem for decades. In 2015, at the Givati ​​car park site, a team of archaeologists discovered part of a defensive ramp that they associated with Accra. The problem is that one of the vessels found in its structure belongs to a ceramic type that does not appear until after 130 BC, that is, decades after when Antiochus IV ordered the construction of the fortress. If the ramp were part of the original Acra of 167 BC, the vessel in its foundation would have to date from before that date, not later. Furthermore, its magnetic intensity fits with a manufacture from the end of the 2nd century BC. C. What does this mean? That ramp may not belong to the original Accra structure. Yes, but. The study concludes that a jug found under a defensive ramp in the Givati ​​car park is too recent to be linked to the original construction of the Accra fortress. But that information does not resolve anything: the ramp could have belonged to a later renovation phase or the jug could have been placed there later. On the other hand, Previous investigations in the Levant They already pointed to a drop in the magnetic field between 220 and 160 BC, and this finding supports it with unprecedented precision. Even so, 24 vessels are an insufficient sample to consolidate the curve on a regional scale: more samples are needed from more sites. In Xataka | A cargo sunk in a Swiss lake 2,000 years ago confirms it: the Roman legions did not deprive themselves of anything In Xataka | The most polarizing and divisive scientific debate of the moment has to do with wine. With one 1,700 years old Cover | Israel Antiquities Authority and Toa Heftiba

Jaén was the largest producer of lead in the world. Decades later, he wants to repeat the game with rare earths, but he has a problem: reality

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Somewhere between Linares and La Carolina there is a rusty derrick: the iron skeleton of what was, at the end of the 19th century, the largest producer of lead in the world. It is, obviously, the past, but in recent years many are completely obsessed with it being also the future. We have the latest example of this about 80 kilometers north of that derrick. There, in Aldeaquemada, an Australian company has just extracted a drill core and to announce that it is “a high quality area”. The question that hovers over Jaén these months is not whether there are minerals under its feet. We all know that. The question is whether all this dance of prospecting that we are seeing is something real or is it simply the expression of the desire of a province that continues to associate its ‘golden age’ with mining. What is happening? The last episode, as I say, stars Osmond Resources. In the SOR-08 survey has cut more ore than expected north of the province. We are talking about a project that covers 756 mining units between Aldeaquemada and Santiesteban del Puerto and search “titanium, zirconium, hafnium and rare earths” trapped in quartzites that hundreds of millions of years ago were beach sand. The ad has a trick, yes. What they have announced is a confirmation ‘during’ drilling. Laboratory analyzes (those that count) will take weeks. But, in reality, that is not what interests us. It is enough to do a small search on the internet to confirm that Jaén entire is being drilled with passion and enthusiasm for months now. And where does all that enthusiasm come from? In principle, three relatively independent engines. The first is geopolitical: in 2024, the European Union pressed the accelerator on ‘mineral sovereignty’ and approved a regulation on critical raw materials. The idea was to ensure that the extraction, processing and recycling of strategic raw materials carried out in Europe cover respectively 10%, 40% and 25% of EU demand. A project like Orión, oriented towards rare earths, is typical of something that in Europe (and in Madrid) sounds like glory. The thing about Madridor it is rhetorical. Just a couple of months ago, the Government approved a raw materials plan of 414 million euros which includes the largest mining prospecting campaign in Spain in more than half a century. Sierra Morena is expressly cited in it. Sara Aagesen he came to say that “with all certainty” rare earths will appear in the country. And then there’s the bag… That is the third engine. Companies like Osmond Resources live off the deposits, yes; but above all they live off the news cycle. After all, its market capitalization depends more on the ‘media battle’ than on the final results. In a field as complex as mining, failure is almost a given. And why is it important? Because behind all this noise there are a lot of small, aging towns those who are sold a new future. The mayor of Aldeaquemada It didn’t take long to celebrate Osmond’s results as a way to “generate jobs and wealth.” But the reality is that the Most exploration projects never produce. The energy transition has served as an alibi to look underground again, but the sector has changed so much that for the vast majority of actors, expectations are beginning to be more useful than reality. And that, in Empty Spain, is an existential problem. Image | Shane Mclendon In Xataka | Where there was lead before, now there will be rare earths: Jaén revives its mining past for the energy transition

university courses dedicated to rare earths

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The West is clear about breaking China’s dominance over the rare earth. But the challenge is not only that, but that Beijing has been cultivating a pool of specialists for decades trained since university. And according to a Reuters investigationthe country has built an entire educational ecosystem dedicated to these critical minerals. What is happening. Every year, several hundred young Chinese study university degrees focused specifically on rare earths, the 17 elements that power many of the advanced devices and technology of our time, from jet engines to electric cars to wind turbines and much more. Reuters identified at least 11 universities and technical centers that offer these degrees, with more than 500 students enrolled per year, in addition to more than 40 specialized laboratories spread throughout the country. Outside of China, according to the same media, there is no center that offers a specific university degree in rare earths. Why it is important. China processes more than 90% of rare earths refined and of the magnets of the world. And apart from mines and factories, people are also needed who know how to extract and separate elements of almost identical chemistry, a technically complex and expensive process. And the advantage of Beijing, in addition to geological and industrial, is that it also has the talent. In detail. Just like details In the middle, a good part of these schools and laboratories are concentrated near the large mines. An example is Baotou, in Inner Mongolia, about 150 kilometers from the largest rare earth deposit in the world. There, the Inner Mongolia University of Science and Technology trains students who receive more than 100 hours of classes in subjects such as rare earth chemistry and materials science, some taught directly in the facilities of companies in the sector. The industry is so tied to these schools that it is normal for students to start working immediately. “In China, I hired kids straight out of college and they were instantly productive; anywhere else I needed to train them for three years,” explained to Reuters Constantine Karayannopoulos, former CEO of the companies Neo Performance Materials and Molycorp. Between the lines. Some universities openly acknowledge that they are forming geopolitical assets. Li Chaozhong, dean of the rare earth program at Jiangxi University of Science and Technology (JXUST), counted told state television CCTV that these minerals are “essential bargaining chips” in global politics, and that his university’s new program also seeks to ensure that China maintains its global leadership in the sector. JXUST students learn the entire supply chain, from processing and metallurgy to magnets, and work on research projects with companies before graduating. ccontrast with the West. Although the refining of rare earths It was Western dominion. Until the end of the 20th century, the industry practically disappeared from Europe and the United States, and with it specialized training. As the media highlights, mining has never attracted much attention to American students, who often see it as a dirty and old-fashioned sector. In 2023, US institutions They awarded just over 200 titles mining engineering and metallurgy generalists. There are specific exceptions, such as the Colorado School of Mines, which is preparing new research centers with the Department of Energy, but little else. Why is it so difficult to close the gap? China has tightened in recent years export restrictions of technology and equipment for rare earths, and according to sources cited by Reuterswould have limited contact between its technicians and foreigners, going so far as to withdraw passports from some of them. Control was intensified following the “Liberation Day” tariffs announced by Donald Trump in April 2025. And now what. The United States has begun to move, with billions of dollars allocated from 2024 to rebuild their experience in mining and legislative proposals to cooperate with allies in formation. The complicated thing is to build a pool of specialists like the one in China. That is something that is not achieved overnight. Cover image | Dominic Vanyi and Arthur Wang In Xataka | The treasure that Europe was looking for in China is in Jaén: rare earth concentrates of 19.4%

We would need to detonate Earth’s nuclear arsenal 130 times to release the energy that caused the Moon’s great cannons.

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The Moon has its own “Grand Canyon of the Colorado”, and doubly so. Only these two canyons were not caused by the slow erosion of a river like the Colorado: 15 minutes of destruction were enough to leave these two enormous scars on the surface of the Moon. 10 minutes of destruction. A 2025 study analyzed in detail two enormous geological strips located in the vicinity of the south pole of the Moon. The analysis has determined, among other conclusions, that they were formed by the impact of an asteroid or comet and that the impact was such that these canyons were formed in less than 15 minutes of destruction. Two large cannons. Their names are Schrödinger Valley and Planck Valley and they are two enormous geological strips that radiate in a straight line from a point located in the Schrödinger basin, near the lunar South Pole, not far from the place chosen by NASA to the return from humans to the Moon. The study has offered us new data on the magnitude and morphological characteristics of these two sores on the surface of our satellite. These two canyons have a length of 270 and 280 kilometers; and 2.7 and 3.5 kilometers deep, respectively. An immense force. In addition to analyzing the characteristics of these two strips, the study tried to characterize the impact that caused them. By studying the way in which these were excavated, they determined that the process lasted between 4.9 and 15 minutes in one of the cases and between 5.2 and 15.4 minutes in the other. That is, they only needed about 10 minutes so that the impact would destroy tons and tons of lunar rock. The impact would have been enormous. According to the team responsible for the study, the energy required to produce these cannons would have been 700 times greater than the energy released by the nuclear tests of China, the United States and the USSR, and 130 times greater than the energy in the world inventory of nuclear weapons. Details of the study, like this last one, were published in an article in the magazine Nature Communications. The best analogue of the Chicxulub crater. The impact would have occurred billions of years before the one that caused the extinction of the dinosaurs on Earth. However, the team responsible for the study maintains in their article that this lunar impact is the “best analog expression on the surface” of the Chicxulub crater. In Xataka | Earth has lost its minimoon, but it posed for a photo before leaving (and promised to return soon) In Xataka | ESA wants to take its ships into space with nuclear reactors: this is how the Rocketroll project works Image | NASA\SVS\Ernie T. Wright A version of this article was published in February 2025

China can slow down Earth’s rotation by filling the Three Gorges

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The Three Gorges Dam It is a marvel of modern engineering. Located in central China, it interrupts the passage of the Yangtze River, the longest in Asia, generating more electricity than any other hydroelectric plant on the planet. It is so large that, according to NASA, filling it can slow down the Earth’s rotation. With a minimal impact, but highlighting the human influence on planetary balances; even the most fundamental ones. The Three Gorges Dam. The Yangtze River is the third longest in the world, behind the Amazon and the Nile. Also called the Blue River, it drains a basin of almost two million square kilometers, feeding 40% of Chinese territory with water. In the middle course of the river there are three natural gorges called Qutang, Wu and Xiling: the Three Gorges. In 2012, almost two decades after the start of construction, China inaugurated the largest hydroelectric power plant in the world, built on the Yangtze River in Hubei province to take advantage of the Three Gorges waterfall. How China overshadowed Itaipu. With a power of 22,500 MW, the Three Gorges Dam is the first to generate more energy than the Itaipú hydroelectric plant, shared by Brazil and Paraguay on the Paraná River. In 2020, the Three Gorges Dam broke Itaipú’s 2016 record of 103 TWh after intense monsoon rains. That year, its 32 700 MW turbines produced almost 112 TWh of electricity, more than what entire countries, such as Finland or Chile, consume annually. The megastructure is completed by two smaller 50 MW generators, which provide power to the plant itself, and a boat lift that allows navigation on the river. And it slowed down the Earth’s rotation. With a length of 2,335 meters and a height of 185, this colossal structure is capable of retaining up to 40 cubic kilometers of water, or in other words: 40 billion liters. A gigantic mass that, as NASA warned in 2005 and was evaluated laterif filled, it could have a calculable influence on the rotation of our planet. According to geophysicist Benjamin Fong Chao of NASA’s Goddard Center, filling the Three Gorges Dam would slightly shift the Earth’s axis to slow its rotation, increasing the length of the day by 0.06 microseconds. A slightly longer day. Although it is a small change compared to the melting of the polar caps or large earthquakes, demonstrates the impact that human activities can have on our planet, even on a scale as large as the Earth’s rotation. Take the devastating Indonesian tsunami of 2004. It was caused by an earthquake which, in turn, was due to a compaction of the Earth due to the interaction between the tectonic plates of India and Myanmar. That tsunami had the opposite effect: it moved the North Pole about 2.5 cm to the east, which slightly accelerated the planet’s rotation, reducing the length of a day by 2.68 microseconds. The key: the moment of inertia. The trigger for this effect is a physical magnitude called “moment of inertia” that describes the resistance of a body to changes in its rotation. The moment of inertia is greater or less depending on the amount of mass of the object and how that mass is distributed with respect to its axis of rotation. The classic example is a figure skater who, by crossing his arms close to his body, increases his rotation speed. Similarly, the Earth’s rotation can be modified by changes in its mass distribution. In the example of Indonesia, the movement of tectonic plates caused a tsunami in the Indian Ocean that modified the distribution of masses on the Earth’s surface and, consequently, the planet’s moment of inertia. The Moon has competition. The Earth is not a perfect sphere; Its axis of rotation shifts naturally due to changes in the atmosphere, oceans, and Earth’s crust. Since 1900, this axis has moved about 10 centimeters per year. Traditionally, this displacement was attributed to the retreat of glaciers or the gravitational pull of the Moon. Now we are beginning to understand the hand of man, and the Three Gorges Dam or the melting of the poles, which increases the water level towards the equator, are not the only examples. Another example is wells. Between 1993 and 2010, human geoengineering extracted approximately 2,150 gigatons of groundwater, used for consumption, agriculture, livestock, and industry. This massive extraction raised sea levels by more than six millimeters and, surprisingly, shifted the Earth’s axis of rotation by 80 centimeters east. Question of adjusting the clock? The impact of the wells or the Three Gorges Dam on the Earth’s rotation, although minimal, raises questions about the influence of human activities on our planet. For years, some researchers have advocated introduce a negative leap second in international time if the Earth’s rotation becomes slightly faster. As we saw a few months agothis idea is becoming progressively outdated. A Nature study suggests that the melting of the poles is already offsetting the hypothetical (and tiny) acceleration of the Earth due to human causes. The leap second was going to be introduced in 2026… And for now it has been postponed to 2029. It is possible that it will never be introduced. Short record. The impressive magnitude of the Three Gorges Dam can be put into perspective in two ways. The first is by observing the works that China is undertaking in the future Medog hydroelectric power stationin Tibet, located on the Yarlung Tsangpo River. Its works began in 2025 and, once it is completed, in 2035, it will be the most powerful dam on the planet, three times more than that of the Three Gorges. The second is with a fact: despite its brutal dimensions, the Three Gorges only produce 1% of China’s annual electricity. A testament to the country’s energy voracity. In Xataka | Dujiangyan: the engineers who, more than 2,000 years ago, decided to tame the Min River and, unintentionally, ended up forging China

A frantic race has begun between China and the US for Brazil’s rare earths. And Brazil only asks for one thing in return.

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After a diplomatic incident with Japan, China abruptly reduced its exports of rare earths, causing an immediate shock in industries around the world that depended on these materials to manufacture everything from magnets to advanced electronics. For weeks, companies and governments discovered the extent to which a seemingly invisible resource could become a lever of global power. A global race that is decided far from Washington and Beijing. This push for critical minerals has entered a new phase, with Brazil now converted on the board where the interests of the United States and China intersect. The reason? They both search ensure access to key rare earths for technology, defense and energy transition, but this time they are not negotiating on equal terms. Brazil, with one of the largest reserves in the world, has made it clear tons of common sense: that it does not want to repeat the historical role of simple exporter of raw materials, and is using that position to redefine the rules of the game. The US accelerates, but Brazil slows down. Washington has intensified its offensive with multi-million dollar investment proposalsbilateral agreements and formulas to guarantee direct supply to US companies. It has even started to secure rights on production through financing, trying to close the path to China in a supply chain that it considers strategic. However, this approach has been perceived in Brazil like too aggressivewhich has generated political resistance and has stopped agreements that, on paper, would benefit both parties. China is still in the game. Meanwhile, China has not disappeared from the board, but quite the opposite: is still the main global player in the processing of rare earths and maintains active commercial relations with Brazil. Exports to the Asian giant have grownand its industrial experience remains difficult to match in the short term. This puts Brazil in a unique position, where it can negotiate simultaneously with multiple powers without being forced to choose, at least for now. The Brazilian condition. This is where Brazil introduces its strategic turn: opening the door to foreign capital, there is no problem with that, but with a clear and unusual condition in this type of agreement. It is not enough to extract resources, but any partner must contribute to local technological development, processing within the country and job creation. In other words, Brazil demands to transform its mineral wealth in own industrial capacitybreaking with decades of dependence in which it exported raw materials and imported finished products. From exporter to industrial power. This change of focus is translating in concrete proposalssuch as the possible creation of a state company to manage critical minerals or a battery of laws aimed at strengthening national control over the sector. The idea is clear: go from selling resources to build the entire chain of value within the country, from extraction to manufacturing of key components. There is no doubt that it will not be a quick or easy process, but it marks an ambition that goes far beyond a simple commercial agreement. The real pulse: who accepts Brazil’s rules. In essence, the competition between the United States and China for Brazilian rare earths is no longer fought only in terms of investment or access, but in who is willing to accept the conditions that third parties imposein this case Brazil. Because the country is not saying “no” to anyone, but something more uncomfortable for the great powers: “yes, but on our terms.” And that introduces a new element in the geopolitics of resources, one where control no longer depends only on who needs the minerals and has the money, but on who has the capacity (and the will) to impose the rules of the game. For Brazil, a master move. Image | NZ Defense Force, YouTube In Xataka | China has just discovered the largest deposit of rare earths in the world. And he did it just when he needed it most. In Xataka | The world’s rare earth reserves, laid out in this graph showing the brutal dominance of a single country

Campo de Montiel has rare earths to cover 33% of European demand, according to a mining company. The Board has said “no, thank you”

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Oil may be the resource that makes most of the headlines today, but the rare earthare “the cover” of the technology industry: they are decisive practically in any sector and also set the geopolitical agenda at a time of tariffs and vetoes. And if there is a country that cuts cod into rare earths (spoiler: They are neither earth nor are they rarebut 17 metals) that is China: there is no one to cough or in reserves neither in production. There was a time when The United States dominated this sectorbut that time passed away. And Europe? Well, at the moment rare earths are not produced, but we are working on it: has stepped on the accelerator at the Per Geijer superminein Kiruna (Sweden), where you could get 18% of what you need. Meanwhile, in a place in La Mancha whose name I don’t want to remember, there is who points that could obtain 2,100 tons per year of lanthanides, enough to cover 33% of European needs. There is only one little problem: the Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha has said that they are not interested. And they are not alone. Campo de Montiel is a (potential) mine. Back in 2013 the Spanish company Quantum Mining put under his magnifying glass the region of Campo de Montiel, in Ciudad Real. Next to Torrenueva is that promising site that is the object of your desires: Matamulas. According to their analysis, it is full of monazite (along with bastnasite, the main rare earth ore) gray. But really loaded: the company assures that in Campo de Montiel more than 2,100 tons could be produced per year. Is that a lot or a little? According to the company, it is approximately a third of European consumption needs, although Eurostat figure in 12,900 annual tons imported by 2024, which would leave the percentage around 16% (the company does not publicly detail with what reference it calculates that third). The firm lands it with applications such as the construction of 350,000 electric cars or 10,000 wind turbines. Quantum Mining Production Estimates “We’re not interested.” A month ago Quantum Minería tried again and you already have an answer of the autonomous government: Mercedes Gómez, the Minister of Sustainable Development, explains that they are not interested in holding a competition so that tastings can be carried out at the Matamulas site. Not again: in 2013 the Board granted the mining company (and two other companies) exploitation permits, which was rejected in 2017. In 2024 came back to request permits, this time framed within the Neodimio project, again encountering a no. The EU also left them outside of their strategic projects. What Quantum wants to do. The mining plan It involves temporarily removing a half-meter layer of vegetation (mainly cereal) so that, once the process is finished, it can be reused in the restoration. Afterwards, backhoes extract two meters deep to reach the gray monazite. That material is taken to a concentration plant to be screened using physical processes, without chemical additives, so that the soil can be returned to its site later. Then the land is leveled and the crop is replaced. These works are carried out hectare by hectare, so that it does not interrupt the agricultural processes in the surroundings. According to the company, when the land is restored it can be cultivated “even in better conditions than the original ones.” Why not. Given the insistent interest of Quantum, the citizen platform ‘Yes to the Living Land‘ and other citizen activism movements once again opposed, in addition to one of the wineries in the region. A decade ago Ecologists in Action detailed that the environmental impact of this operation on the 27,500 hectares included in the project would be severe. One of the bottlenecks is water: for this operation they estimate that between 310,000 and 500,000 cubic meters of water would be needed annually during the estimated ten years of exploitation (washing and processing are two processes that consume a lot of water). In that area the water pressure is high, with droughts, reservoirs in states of emergency, overexploited aquifers and intense grassroots agricultural activity as icing on the cake. In addition, in the region there are two Special Protection Areas for Birds and it is the habitat of the lynx. In Xataka | The world’s rare earth reserves, laid out in this graph showing the brutal dominance of a single country In Xataka | Europe seeks its sovereignty in rare earths and knows how to achieve it the fast way: with a supermine in Sweden Cover | ダモリ and Karen Paredes Carabantes

China has just discovered the largest deposit of rare earths in the world. And he did it just when he needed it most.

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China has a privileged position in terms of possession of rare earthbut it has just surprised the world with a new discovery: the Ministry of Natural Resources has confirmed that the Maoniuping deposit, in Sichuan province, is now the largest deposit of light rare earths on the planet. The news comes at a key moment, since it is these minerals that are the protagonists one of the hottest fronts between Beijing and Washington in their tariff war. What exactly has been found. New exploration in the Maoniuping mining area in Mianning county has confirmed the existence of 9.67 million tons of rare earth oxideswhich represents an increase of more than 300% compared to the reserves that were known until now, as announced by the Chinese Ministry of Natural Resources. With this data, the deposit surpasses that of Bayan Obo, in Inner Mongolia, which until now held the title of the largest light rare earth mine in the world with 44 million tons of proven industrial reserves. In addition to rare earth oxides, surveys have identified 27.1 million tons of fluorspar and 37.2 million tons of barite, both classified as deposits of exceptional scale. Why does it matter? Rare earth elements are the 17 elements that make electric car engines, fiber optic amplifiers, advanced weapons systems and smartphones possible, among many other technological elements that we use in our daily lives. Without them, much of the technology and defense industry simply does not work. China already produces more than 80% of the world supply annual of these materials, according to the state agency Xinhua. And this discovery further reinforces China’s position until now. The discovery within the discovery. According to Wang Denghong, director of the Institute of Mineral Resources of the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, what is truly striking about the discovery is not only the rare earths but fluorite and barite. Fluorite is an essential ingredient in the manufacturing of semiconductors and lithium-ion batteries. Barite, for its part, is essential in oil and gas extraction: it is used to stabilize wells and prevent blowouts. Without this element, hydrocarbon exploration, including fracking, would be paralyzed. Restrictions. Since April last year, China introduced export restrictions on seven rare earths and permanent magnets, precisely in response to the tariffs imposed by Donald Trump about Chinese products. China controls the gateway to rare earths, and basically any company that wants to take these materials out of the country needs express government authorization. Exports to Europe have picked up since the new licensing regime was implemented. Those going to the United States remain stagnant, according to collect Interesting Engineering. What’s coming now. With this discovery, Beijing consolidates its ability to use critical minerals as diplomatic and commercial leverage. The West has been trying for years diversify your supply chains of rare earths with projects in Australia, Canada or northern Europe, but none yet approach the scale of the Asian country. Cover image | aboodi vesakaran and ZME Science In Xataka | In 2010, Japan learned to acquire its rare earths without depending on China. Germany wants to copy its strategy now

Germany wants to do what Japan did with rare earths in 2010: join forces against China

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BMW, Rheinmetall and the main German industries are working on the creation of a joint agency to purchase critical mineralsa move that would reduce dependence on China, according to they count from Financial Times. The idea is to pursue the model that Japan proposed a few years ago, and the story behind it explains why it makes sense. The starting point. In 2010, China imposed an embargo on rare earth exports to Japan in the midst of a territorial dispute. Tokyo depended on these materials to manufacture everything from cars to electronics. To alleviate the mess they had gotten themselves into, they decided to build an alternative architecture. They created JOGMEC (Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security), a state agency that collaborates with the country’s main conglomerates to ensure the supply of minerals, oil and gas. With this, Japan significantly reduced its dependence on China for rare earths. What Germany is building now. According to counted In the middle, BMW works together with the VDA automobile lobby and representatives of the German defense industry in order to develop a structure similar to what Japan did at the time. Rheinmetall is also in the talks. The specific idea is to create a kind of large private company that bulk buys critical raw materials (lithium, gallium, germanium, rare earths) on behalf of German industry. Just like share In the middle, the federal government could participate with a minority stake. The figures are not yet finalized, but the total cost of the project could amount to several hundred million euros. Why now. Last year, China imposed export controls on essential materials for batteries, permanent magnets and weapons systems. In November it temporarily suspended some of these restrictions until November 2026, but the scare was already in place. Europe was exposedwithout real alternatives, without negotiating power, nothing to do. And German industry (car manufacturers, defense companies, industrial machinery) realized how fragile its supply chain was. The Japanese model. JOGMEC works because it combines public capital with the agility that its large private companies allow, as they are structures with centuries of history in Japan specialized in industrial supply. Germany already has a raw materials agency, DERA, but sources close to the media recognize that needs a profound reform to fulfill that role. The agency being proposed now would have more muscle, with active financing, investment capacity in mining and recycling projects, and direct presence in the market. The state development bank KfW has already prepared a fund of 1 billion euros to finance mining, processing and recycling projects of critical materials, which would serve as a complement. Diplomacy. Just like account The media, Chancellor Friedrich Merz contacted Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi this week, and critical minerals were on the table. And Japan has shown interest in exporting its model abroad. In parallel, this same week the media informed also that the Australian Lynas Rare Earths, the largest producer of rare earths outside China, has closed a supply agreement with Japan with a guaranteed minimum price of $110 per kilogram for neodymium-praseodymium for 12 years. The same price that Washington guaranteed to the American producer MP Materials. The tension with Brussels. The European Commission also works in a centralized body to coordinate strategic purchases and reserves of critical minerals. But from Germany there is skepticism. According to share FT, Germany’s position is that “the industry must make its own decisions” and that governments should limit themselves to managing strategic reserves. In other words, Berlin prefers a model of private initiative with specific state support rather than leaving the strategy in the hands of Brussels. What is at stake. Steel, lithium and rare earths are the backbone of the energy transition and European rearmament. Without neodymium there are no magnets for electric motors or guided missiles. Without gallium and germanium there are no advanced semiconductors. China controls between 60% and 90% of the production chain for most of these materials. Hence many countries are restless. Cover image | Prometheus and Wikimedia Commons In Xataka | The United States knows it has a problem with rare earths from China. And he believes he has an alternative: Mexico

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