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 and veins carry blood around your body. Arteries take blood away from your heart, delivering it to your organs and muscles. Veins bring blood back to your heart from those same organs and muscles. Your main arteries include the coronary arteries of your heart, the carotid and cerebral arteries of your brain, and the peripheral arteries, which stretch out into your limbs.