Pulse is felt due to the rhythmic contraction and relaxation of the

The pulse is defined as the rhythmic expansion and recoil of arteries that occurs in response to the heart's contraction [1]. Specifically, it is created when the main pumping chambers of the heart, the ventricles, contract to force blood into the systemic circulation. This sequence of contraction (systole) and relaxation (diastole) of the heart's chambers constitutes the cardiac cycle [4]. During ventricular systole, the muscular walls of the left ventricle contract, pumping blood out to the body and exerting pressure against the arterial walls [2]. This pressure wave travels through the aorta and main arteries, where it can be felt as a pulse at various points on the body's surface [1]. While the pulse is felt in the arteries, its fundamental cause is the rhythmic activity of the heart's chambers.

Sources

1. [1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK607442/
2. [2] Science , class X (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 5: Life Processes > Blood pressure > p. 93
3. [4] Science , class X (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 5: Life Processes > Our pump — the heart > p. 92