renal artery, one of a pair of large, visceral branches of the abdominal aorta, arising inferior to the superior mesenteric artery at the level of the disk between the first and second lumbar vertebrae. The left renal artery is somewhat more superior than the right. Before reaching the kidney, each divides into four branches. The renal arteries supply the kidneys, suprarenal glands, and the ureters.
