The first cranial nerve,
which conveys smell sensations (as nerve
impulses) from the nose to the brain.
Each of the two olfactory nerves detects smells by means of hair-like receptors
in the mucous membrane lining the
roof of the nasal cavity. Nerve fibers pass from the receptors through tiny
holes in the roof of the nasal cavity and come together to form two structures
called the olfactory bulbs. From the bulbs, nerve fibers travel to the olfactory
center in the brain.
| Head anatomy with olfactory
Source: Patrick J. Lynch, medical illustrator. Creative Commons Attribution
2.5 License 2006