The Gulf of Mexico covers a surface area of 579,153 sq miles (1.5 million sq km), and is measured 994 miles (1,600 km) west to east, and 559 miles (900 km) north to south.
After travelling from the aorta, blood travels through peripheral arteries into smaller arteries called arterioles, and eventually to capillaries. Arterioles help in regulating blood pressure by the variable contraction of the smooth muscle of their walls, and deliver blood to the capillaries.
Arteries are the blood vessels which carry blood away from the heart. Arteries further branch into small arteries called arterioles. Arterioles further divide into capillaries which are the tiny blood vessels that facilitate the exchange of water and nutrients between blood and organs. This is the difference between arteries and arterioles.