The enormous newly-discovered cypress tree was found in a forest in Tibet. It's the tallest in Asia and the second tallest tree in the world.
A cypress tree in Tibet is the tallest tree ever discovered in Asia. It is also believed to be the second-tallest tree in the world, standing at an astonishing 335 feet (102m) tall. At this height, the tree would tower over the Statue of Liberty, which stands at 305 feet (93 m), says LiveScience.
The gigantic cypress was discovered in May by a Peking University research team at the Yarlung Zangbo Grand Canyon nature reserve in Bome County, Nyingchi City, in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, according to a statement released by the university.
The species the cypress belongs to is unclear, although Chinese state media publications suggested it is either a Himalayan cypress (Cupressus torulosa) or a Tibetan cypress (Cupressus gigantea). The tree is 9.6 feet (2.9m) in diameter.
Currently, the tallest tree in the world is an 381-foot (116m) coastal redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) in the Redwood National Park in California. The tree, estimated to be between 600 and 800 years old and nicknamed Hyperion after one of the Titans in Greek mythology, was discovered in 2006.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the globe, the world's oldest tree has just been confirmed. Scientists say that a Patagonia cypress tree in Chile known as “Great Grandfather” or Alerce Milenario the oldest. Recent analysis of a segment of tree rings shows the giant is an estimated 5,484 years old - likely taking the award for oldest living tree.