Secret data, tiny islands and a quest for treasure on the ocean floor

KINGSTON, Jamaica – As demand grows globally for metals wanted to make batteries for electrical autos, one of many richest untapped sources of the uncooked supplies lies 2½ miles beneath the floor of the Pacific Ocean.

This distant part of the seabed, about 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers) southwest of San Diego, may quickly develop into the world’s first industrial-scale mining web site in worldwide waters.