The curator of the Cook Islands Library and Museum, Jean Mason, says, “They look like chocolate truffles; just don’t eat them,” as she extracts a black, knobby rock from a display case.
This Pacific nation’s future could be determined by the “rock” woman is carrying.
The accumulation of minerals on the seafloor over millennia has produced what scientists refer to as a polymetallic nodule.
These ancient rocks, which are rich in cobalt, nickel, and manganese, are now important because the metals are used in batteries that run everything from cell phones to electric cars.
The low-lying Pacific Islands, which are among the countries most at risk from climate change, are now tense because of them.
