01 / Location & anatomical relationships
On either side of the heart, inside the rib cage.
02 / Structure & organization
The right lung usually has three lobes and the left two. Pleural membranes surround each lung, while branching airways conduct air toward respiratory surfaces. Pulmonary vessels carry blood for gas exchange; bronchial vessels nourish supporting tissues.
03 / Function
Air travels into tiny air sacs, where these gases move between air and blood.
04 / Mechanism
Airways branch into smaller tubes ending in air sacs. Oxygen passes across the air-sac walls into surrounding capillaries, while carbon dioxide moves the other way. The diaphragm and chest muscles move air; the lungs themselves are not breathing muscles.
Working together: respiratory system
Your diaphragm contracts to help draw air in. Air reaches your lungs, where oxygen crosses into the blood through the walls of tiny air sacs.
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Connect structure with function
Ventilation brings air to alveoli, while perfusion brings blood to them. Effective exchange requires an appropriate match between these processes across lung regions.
Check your understanding
Locate the lungs in relation to its neighbors. Explain how the structural features described above support its function, then distinguish it from a nearby structure with a different role.
Keep learning
Continue with OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology for system-level study. This atlas is educational and has not undergone independent medical peer review.