History

(Named after Niobe, the daughter of Tantalus) Discovered in 1801 by Hatchett in an ore sent to England.  The metal was first prepared in 1864 by Blomstrand, who reduced the chloride by heating it in a hydrogen atmosphere. The name niobium was adopted by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemicstry (IUPAC) in 1950 after 100 years of controversy. Many leading chemical societies and government organizations refer to it by this name. Most metallurgists, leading metal societies, and all but one of the leading U.S. commercial producers, however, still refer to the metal as "columbium."

Sources

The element is found in niobite (or columbite), niobite-tantalite, parochlore, and euxenite. Large deposits of niobium have been found associated with carbonatites (carbon-silicate rocks), as a constituent of parochlore. Extensive ore reserves are found in Canada, Brazil, Nigeria, Zaire, and in Russia.

Properties

Niobium is a shiny, white, soft, and ductile metal, and takes on a bluish cast when exposed to air at room temperatures for a long time. The metal starts to oxidize in air at 200oC, and when processed at even moderate temperatures must be placed in a protective atmosphere. 
A Periodic Table of the Elements at Los Alamos National Laboratory