Scientists have traced the origins of a significant new niobium deposit deep beneath central Australia to geological processes associated with the breakup of an ancient supercontinent, offering fresh insights into the formation of critical minerals vital to modern technology.

Unusual carbonatite rocks, which contain noteworthy concentrations of niobium, were identified in the Aileron Province and dated to between eight hundred thirty and eight hundred twenty million years ago, a period of intense continental rifting preceding the fragmentation of the supercontinent Rodinia.

The study, led by researchers at Curtin University’s Frontier Institute for Geoscience Solutions and collaborators from the University of Göttingen, analysed drill core samples using multiple isotope-dating techniques alongside high-resolution imaging to unravel the complex history of these rare rocks and how metal-rich magma ascended from deep within the Earth’s mantle through long-lived fault zones to reach the crust.

Niobium is a strategic metal used to make lighter, stronger steel for aerospace, pipelines, and electric vehicles, and it is a key component in some next-generation battery and superconducting technologies.

The findings elucidate how tectonic fault zones that remained open and active for hundreds of millions of years provided pathways for carbonatite magma, enabling rare metal-rich melts to rise and crystallise beneath the surface, ultimately forming one of the world’s most promising new deposits of niobium.

Co-author Professor Chris Kirkland emphasised that applying advanced geochronology and isotope geochemistry allowed the team to distinguish original magmatic events from subsequent geological alterations, reconstructing more than five hundred million years of geological evolution in the region.

This research not only deepens scientific understanding of the geodynamic conditions that concentrate critical minerals but also has potential implications for future exploration and the global supply chain of metals essential for clean energy and advanced manufacturing technologies.