The Peking University team made the discovery while studying a part of the massive canyon using a lidar drone, which uses pulsed lasers to generate 3-dimensional images. Yarlung Zangbo is the world’s deepest and longest canyon, exceeding even the Grand Canyon in the United States, and has a unique ecosystem due to its high altitude and relative isolation from human influence.
The tree they spotted is an incredible 335 feet (102.3 meters) tall: that’s taller than the Statue of Liberty in New York City, or nearly as long as a football field. It is 9.6 feet (2.9 meters) in diameter, according to Chinese media reports.
The university published a number of photos of the colossal conifer, none of which truly do justice to its size, although one full-length image certainly makes an attempt.
Full-length photo of the 102.3-meter Himalayan cypress, Yarlung Zangbo Grand Canyon National Nature Reserve, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region.
However, the team isn't sure if the record-setting tree is a Himalayan cypress (Cupressus torulosa) or a Tibetan cypress (Cupressus gigantea). Whatever species it is, the tree is taller than the previous record-holder, a yellow meranti found in Malaysia’s Danum Valley Conservation Area that is 331 feet (101 meters) tall.
In addition to the record holder, the research team also spotted several other very tall cypress trees in the area, including at least 25 that are taller than 295 feet (90 meters).
The cluster of the Himalayan cypresses in Yarlung Zangbo Grand Canyon National Nature Reserve, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region.
However, the Tibetan timber still isn’t the world’s tallest tree: that behemoth can be found in California’s Redwood National Park. A coastal redwood named Hyperion towers 381 feet (116 meters) above the Earth at its top. It was discovered by the US Park Service in 2006, which has struggled to protect it and other massive redwoods and sequoias from ever-worsening wildfires.