The Sand Springs Range is a short mountain range

Mountain range

A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...

 located in western Nevada

Nevada

Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...

 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 within the Great Basin

Great Basin

The Great Basin is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds in North America and is noted for its arid conditions and Basin and Range topography that varies from the North American low point at Badwater Basin to the highest point of the contiguous United States, less than away at the...

. It is approximately 10 miles (16.1 km) long and is in Churchill County

Churchill County, Nevada

Churchill County is a county located in the western U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2000 census, the population was 23,982. As of July 1, 2007, the population of Churchill County was estimated at 27,190. The county, named after Mexican-American War hero brevet Brigadier General Sylvester Churchill,...

. It separates Salt Wells (to the west) from Fairview Valley (to the east). To the north, it is separated from the Stillwater Range

Stillwater Range

The Stillwater Range is a mountain range located in western Nevada in the United States. It is a SSW-NNE running ridge, approximately long. It cuts across the center of Churchill County and extends partway into Pershing County....

 by Sand Springs Pass. To the south is Gabbs Valley

Gabbs, Nevada

Gabbs is an unincorporated community in Nye County, Nevada, United States. The population was 318 at the 2000 census, at which time it was a city. Since then, it has been dis-incorporated, effective May 8, 2001.-History:...

.

The Sand Springs Range was the site of Project Shoal

Project Shoal

Project Shoal was an underground nuclear test that took place on October 26, 1963 within the Sand Springs Range, approximately southeast of Fallon, Nevada....

, an underground nuclear test conducted as part of the Vela Uniform

Vela Uniform

Vela Uniform was an element of Project Vela conducted jointly by the United States Department of Energy and the Advanced Research Projects Agency...

 program. Shoal was a 12 kiloton device which was detonated 1211 feet (369.1 m) below ground on October 26, 1963. As the area experienced a series of large earthquake

Earthquake

An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...

s in 1954, seismic traces for the events could be compared to help differentiate future Soviet

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

 underground nuclear tests from earthquakes. The site is unrestricted and unmarked. No surface crater was formed, and the casual observer will find little evidence that the event ever took place.

The Sand Springs Range also has several large military

Military

A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...

 radar

Radar

Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...

 installations. These are associated with the bombing range in Fairview Valley, the electronic warfare

Electronic warfare

Electronic warfare refers to any action involving the use of the electromagnetic spectrum or directed energy to control the spectrum, attack an enemy, or impede enemy assaults via the spectrum. The purpose of electronic warfare is to deny the opponent the advantage of, and ensure friendly...

 range in Dixie Valley, and Naval Air Station Fallon

Naval Air Station Fallon

Naval Air Station Fallon or NAS Fallon is the United States Navy's premier air-to-air and air-to-ground training facility. It is located southeast of the city of Fallon in western Nevada in the United States. Since 1996, it has been home to the Naval Fighter Weapons School , and the surrounding...

.

The most prominent peak in the Sand Springs Range is Big Kasock Mountain at an elevation of 7150 feet (2,179.3 m).