Which mountain range in the western US is home to Yosemite National Park?

The Sierra Nevada is the mountain range in the western United States that contains Yosemite National Park. It runs mainly north–south through eastern California, with a small extension into Nevada.

Yosemite’s famous granite cliffs, domes, and valleys are products of the Sierra Nevada’s geological history. Large bodies of granite formed deep underground as magma cooled during the Mesozoic Era. Later uplift and repeated glaciation exposed and sculpted that rock, producing landmarks such as Yosemite Valley, Half Dome, and El Capitan.

The Sierra Nevada is also home to Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks, Lake Tahoe, and Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the contiguous United States at 4,421 meters. The Cascade Range lies farther north, while the Rocky Mountains are much farther east. Yosemite is therefore not merely near the Sierra Nevada; it is located in its central section.