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Grades K–2 · Organisms

How can your nose notice a smell?

A flower can have a smell even when it is too far away to touch your nose. It releases tiny bits called molecules into the air. Moving air can carry some of them into your nose.

O73 visual explanationSchematic head side view: nostrils. Molecules reach smell sensors high inside the nose, which send signals to the brain. Routes and dots are symbolic; no threshold or concentration is calculated.Tiny smell molecules reach sensors in the noseSmell sensorsTo brainMouthNostrilsAir carries molecules through the nostrilsSmell sensors send messages to the brain.

In the diagramTiny smell molecules reach sensors in the noseSmell sensorsTo brainMouthNostrilsAir carries molecules through the nostrilsSmell sensors send messages to the brain.

Two routes bring smell molecules to a small sensor patch high in the nose.

High inside the nose is a small patch of smell sensors. When smell molecules reach these sensors, they can start messages that travel to the brain. The brain helps us recognize the smell.

The nose also notices smells from food. As we chew, some smell molecules travel from the back of the mouth toward the nose. Smell and taste work together to make a food’s flavor. The big dots in the picture stand for molecules too small to see.

About this explanation

Starting knowledge: Know the everyday meanings of nose, mouth and brain.

Sources

  • NIH/NIDCD — Smell Disorders
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