Coso Peak is the highest summit in the Coso Range of eastern California, rising 8,157 feet and ranking among the state's more prominent mountains. Set within the Basin and Range Province east of the Sierra Nevada, it anchors a landscape of alternating ranges and valleys. The peak and much of the southern range lie within Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, while much of the northern range is protected as the Coso Range Wilderness. Its name, likely rooted in Indigenous languages and possibly referring to steam or fire, appeared on maps as prospectors entered the area in the 1860s and became established in official usage by 1913.