History
(Kobald, from the German, goblin or evil spirit, cobalos, Greek, mine) Brandtdiscovered cobalt in about 1735.
Sources
Cobalt occurs in the minerals cobaltite, smaltite, and erythrite, and is oftenassociated with nickel , silver , lead, copper , and iron ores, from which it is most frequently obtainedas a by-product. It is also present in meteorites.
Important ore deposits are found in Zaire, Morocco, and Canada. The U.S. GeologicalSurvey has announced that the bottom of the north central Pacific Ocean may havecobalt-rich deposits at relatively shallow depths in water close to the the HawaiianIslands and other U.S. Pacific territories.
