Aorta

Blood pumped away from the heart is forced into arteries. The aorta is the artery that carries blood out of the heart in the systemic circulatory system. All other systemic arteries arise from it. The aorta consists of three primary regions: the ascending aorta, aortic arch, and descending aorta. The ascending aorta climbs a few centimeters above the heart's left ventricle. The coronary arteries branch off of it. Moving away from the heart, the aortic arch curves left above the heart. Three major arteries arise from it as it continues: the brachiocephalic trunk, left common carotid artery, and left subclavian artery. The third aortic region, the descending aorta, passes downward behind the heart. It at first is positioned just left of the vertebral column and then shifts so that it can move anterior to it.

Above the diaphragm the descending aorta is called the thoracic aorta, and below the diaphragm it is known as the abdominal aorta. In the lower abdominal cavity, the aorta ends as it forks into the right and left common iliac arteries.
Blood flow from the aorta supplies other arterial networks throughout the body. The carotid artery is split into the right common carotid artery and left common carotid artery. The right common carotid artery arises from the brachiocephalic trunk, and the left common carotid artery arises directly from the aortic arch. These arteries serve the head and neck. The left and right subclavian arteries arise from the aorta and provide blood to the upper limbs, and some branches supply the head and neck. Each vertebral artery is a vessel originating from a subclavian artery. The vertebral arteries supply blood to the brain stem, cerebellum, posterior of the brain, and upper spinal cord. The thoracic aorta branches to deliver a network of arterial blood to the thorax, and the abdominal aorta likewise supplies blood throughout the abdomen. Branches at the bottom of the aorta, the common iliac arteries, supply arterial blood to the pelvic region and lower limbs.