Where Does The Platinum In Your Bling Come From?

This is a special PLATINUM edition of the Geo Quiz.

Platinum is a relatively rare and precious metal. It makes up only an estimated .005 parts per million of the Earth’s crust.

Platinum is used by the auto industry to make catalytic converters and hydrogen fuel cells. It also goes into oxygen sensors and some anti-cancer drugs. And platinum is used to create some very desirable bling (apparently).

This precious metal can be found in several places around the world. But most of the globe’s supply of the stuff is in Africa.

We want you to pinpoint the country where the biggest platinum mines are found. It’s also where about 80-thousand miners are currently on strike.

Here’s a hint: this country is also the fifth-biggest gold producer in the world.

The answer is South Africa which supplies 75 percent of the world’s platinum. Economic geologist Anthony Naldrett of the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa details how platinum from South Africa’s Bushveld complex ends up in everything from catalytic converters to expensive bling.