The Yarlung Tsangpo Canyon is the largest canyon on land on Earth, stretching 505 km and plunging 6,096 m from the peak to the bottom at its deepest point in the Tibet Autonomous Region.
The rugged, hard-to-reach area between two towering peaks of the Yarlung Tsangpo Canyon. (Photo: NASA Earth Observatory).
The Yarlung Tsangpo Canyon is even longer than the Grand Canyon in Arizona and is deeper than any known canyon on land. Its name is derived from the Yarlung Tsangpo River, nicknamed “the Everest of rivers” due to its inaccessibility and the highest average elevation (4,000 m) among major rivers on Earth. The upper reaches of the Yarlung Tsangpo begin in western Tibet at the Angsi Glacier, after which the river winds eastward across the Tibetan Plateau before making a sharp turn southwest to merge with the Brahmaputra River, according to Live Science.
The Yarlung Tsangpo Canyon spans 505 km, over 60 km longer than the Grand Canyon. This region includes some of the most rugged and least explored areas in the world, including treacherous terrain in the Tibet Autonomous Region, which cuts between two soaring peaks: Namcha Barwa (7,782 m) and Gyala Peri (7,294 m). The canyon drops to its deepest point along this stretch, extending 6,009 m from peak to bottom, three times deeper than the Grand Canyon. The average depth of the Yarlung Tsangpo Canyon is 2,270 m. The canyon formed approximately 3 million years ago when tectonic forces pushed the Earth’s crust upward, deeply carving into the Yarlung Tsangpo River, leading to significant erosion.
Additionally, this canyon is home to the tallest tree ever discovered in Asia, a 102 m tall cypress that surpasses the Statue of Liberty. A research team from Peking University measured the height of the tree in May 2023 during an ecological survey aimed at preserving the unique ecosystem of the Tibet Autonomous Region. It remains unclear what species this cypress belongs to, although Chinese reports suggest it may be either the Himalayan Cypress (Cupressus torulosa) or the Tibetan Cypress (Cupressus gigantea).
