After almost a decade of exploring forests and conducting scientific investigations, researchers have successfully identified the tallest tree in East Asia: “The Heaven Sword.” Standing at 84.1 meters (approximately 276 feet), one might assume that locating such a massive tree would be straightforward; however, the reality was quite the opposite.
“When we confirmed the tallest tree, we felt immense relief because it was truly a long journey to reach that conclusion,” stated Dr. Rebecca Chia-Chun Hsu, a study author from the Taiwan Forestry Research Institute, in an interview with IFLScience.
The narrative of this remarkable quest for East Asia’s tallest tree is detailed in a new study released this week. Below, you can view the specimen in its full splendor, from top to bottom. Be prepared to scroll for a while…
This tree was found in Taiwan, an island renowned for its exceptionally tall trees nestled within its rugged mountainous landscape. Prominent among these is the Taiwania fir (Taiwania cryptomerioides), a giant that the local Indigenous Rukai people refer to as “The tree that hits the moon.”
“Taiwan is situated across the Tropic of Cancer, which allows the island to host numerous tree species from both temperate and tropical climates. The extensive area of steep mountains has preserved many old-growth forests, untouched by previous logging activities,” Chia-Chun Hsu remarked in her conversation with IFLScience.
The search commenced in August 2014, when researchers from the Taiwan Forestry Research Institute embarked on a quest to find a legendary grove known as the “Chilan Three Sisters.” Situated in the Chilan conservation area, tales of this giant trio had circulated for years, yet they had never been scientifically verified.
The team successfully located them, with the tallest tree measuring 69.3 meters (227 feet) and boasting a trunk diameter of nearly 3 meters (approximately 10 feet) – certainly impressive, but the researchers believed that even larger firs remained undiscovered.
They next turned their attention to a more remote region near Mount Benya and Great Ghost Lake, where locals suggested the largest population of Taiwania firs might be found. The expedition was grueling, requiring four days of heavy hiking through dense forest. They managed to climb a 71.7-meter (235-foot) tree during that trip, but still suspected that more scientific methods might reveal something taller.
To become more rigorous with their approach, the team used LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), a technology that sweeps across vast swaths of landscape by firing laser pulses from an aircraft.
LiDAR data was used to scour through the thousands of trees: here, you can see it picking out three people within the giant forest.
LiDAR data was used to search through the thousands of trees: here, you can see it picking out three people within the giant forest.
Image credit: Hsu et al., 2026
But there was a small hiccup. Taiwan’s unique geography can be deceiving to these airborne, technological methods. On rugged, uneven terrain, trees perched beside steep cliffs can appear far taller than they actually are, for instance.
To overcome this hurdle, they simply used hundreds of people to double-check the LiDAR findings, as human eyes are much better at recognizing these subtleties. It turned out that the algorithm had misjudged the height of around 93 percent of the trees in the survey.
But there was a small hiccup. Taiwan’s unique geography can be deceiving to these airborne, technological methods. On rugged, uneven terrain, trees perched beside steep cliffs can appear far taller than they actually are, for instance.
To overcome this hurdle, they simply used hundreds of people to double-check the LiDAR findings, as human eyes are much better at recognizing these subtleties. It turned out that the algorithm had misjudged the height of around 93 percent of the trees in the survey.
As a result, the team published the “Taiwan Giant Tree Map” by the end of 2022, flaunting 941 individual trees that stood over 65 meters (213 feet) in height.
In January 2023, during the Lunar New Year holiday, they launched a fresh expedition to find the tallest tree on the map. When they believed they had found it, climbers scaled the trunk and dropped a measuring tape from the very top to confirm it.
It was official: the “Heaven Sword of the Da’an River” was recorded as the tallest specimen in Taiwan and East Asia, measuring 84.1 meters (nearly 276 feet).
The tree atlas also led the scientists to an extraordinary “temple of giants” near Mount Benya, featuring a grove of 11 trees each exceeding 65 meters (213 feet). They also discovered a new “pure forest” of around 30 giant Taiwania firs near Great Ghost Lake, growing in a dense, ancient cluster.
These pockets of gigantic Taiwania firs are vital not only to the species’ health, but to the health of the planet itself. As immense stores of living wood, these trees draw down huge quantities of carbon from the atmosphere, locking it away in their trunks and root systems.
“These trees are vital for the planet’s health,” the researchers wrote in a post about their discoveries.
“Taiwan’s giant forests [are] some of the most carbon-dense environments in the entire world, comparable to the most famous old-growth forests on Earth. These ‘trees that hit the moon’ are not just natural wonders; they are essential guardians of the environment,” they added. tallest tree discovered
After almost a decade of exploring forests and conducting scientific investigations, researchers have successfully identified the tallest tree in East Asia: “The Heaven Sword.” Standing at 84.1 meters (approximately 276 feet), one might assume that locating such a massive tree would be straightforward; however, the reality was quite the opposite.
“When we confirmed the tallest tree, we felt immense relief because it was truly a long journey to reach that conclusion,” stated Dr. Rebecca Chia-Chun Hsu, a study author from the Taiwan Forestry Research Institute, in an interview with IFLScience.
The narrative of this remarkable quest for East Asia’s tallest tree is detailed in a new study released this week. Below, you can view the specimen in its full splendor, from top to bottom. Be prepared to scroll for a while…
This tree was found in Taiwan, an island renowned for its exceptionally tall trees nestled within its rugged mountainous landscape. Prominent among these is the Taiwania fir (Taiwania cryptomerioides), a giant that the local Indigenous Rukai people refer to as “The tree that hits the moon.”
“Taiwan is situated across the Tropic of Cancer, which allows the island to host numerous tree species from both temperate and tropical climates. The extensive area of steep mountains has preserved many old-growth forests, untouched by previous logging activities,” Chia-Chun Hsu remarked in her conversation with IFLScience.
The search commenced in August 2014, when researchers from the Taiwan Forestry Research Institute embarked on a quest to find a legendary grove known as the “Chilan Three Sisters.” Situated in the Chilan conservation area, tales of this giant trio had circulated for years, yet they had never been scientifically verified.
The team successfully located them, with the tallest tree measuring 69.3 meters (227 feet) and boasting a trunk diameter of nearly 3 meters (approximately 10 feet) – certainly impressive, but the researchers believed that even larger firs remained undiscovered.
They next turned their attention to a more remote region near Mount Benya and Great Ghost Lake, where locals suggested the largest population of Taiwania firs might be found. The expedition was grueling, requiring four days of heavy hiking through dense forest. They managed to climb a 71.7-meter (235-foot) tree during that trip, but still suspected that more scientific methods might reveal something taller.
To become more rigorous with their approach, the team used LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), a technology that sweeps across vast swaths of landscape by firing laser pulses from an aircraft.
LiDAR data was used to scour through the thousands of trees: here, you can see it picking out three people within the giant forest.
LiDAR data was used to search through the thousands of trees: here, you can see it picking out three people within the giant forest.
Image credit: Hsu et al., 2026
But there was a small hiccup. Taiwan’s unique geography can be deceiving to these airborne, technological methods. On rugged, uneven terrain, trees perched beside steep cliffs can appear far taller than they actually are, for instance.
To overcome this hurdle, they simply used hundreds of people to double-check the LiDAR findings, as human eyes are much better at recognizing these subtleties. It turned out that the algorithm had misjudged the height of around 93 percent of the trees in the survey.
But there was a small hiccup. Taiwan’s unique geography can be deceiving to these airborne, technological methods. On rugged, uneven terrain, trees perched beside steep cliffs can appear far taller than they actually are, for instance.
To overcome this hurdle, they simply used hundreds of people to double-check the LiDAR findings, as human eyes are much better at recognizing these subtleties. It turned out that the algorithm had misjudged the height of around 93 percent of the trees in the survey.
As a result, the team published the “Taiwan Giant Tree Map” by the end of 2022, flaunting 941 individual trees that stood over 65 meters (213 feet) in height.
In January 2023, during the Lunar New Year holiday, they launched a fresh expedition to find the tallest tree on the map. When they believed they had found it, climbers scaled the trunk and dropped a measuring tape from the very top to confirm it.
It was official: the “Heaven Sword of the Da’an River” was recorded as the tallest specimen in Taiwan and East Asia, measuring 84.1 meters (nearly 276 feet).
The tree atlas also led the scientists to an extraordinary “temple of giants” near Mount Benya, featuring a grove of 11 trees each exceeding 65 meters (213 feet). They also discovered a new “pure forest” of around 30 giant Taiwania firs near Great Ghost Lake, growing in a dense, ancient cluster.
These pockets of gigantic Taiwania firs are vital not only to the species’ health, but to the health of the planet itself. As immense stores of living wood, these trees draw down huge quantities of carbon from the atmosphere, locking it away in their trunks and root systems.
“These trees are vital for the planet’s health,” the researchers wrote in a post about their discoveries.
“Taiwan’s giant forests [are] some of the most carbon-dense environments in the entire world, comparable to the most famous old-growth forests on Earth. These ‘trees that hit the moon’ are not just natural wonders; they are essential guardians of the environment,” they added.
