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COVID-19 Airborne Contagion — Can you catch Coronavirus from the Air?
COVID-19 researchers have been working hard to determine how the disease spreads. As the old saying goes, to defeat your enemy, you must first know your enemy! Airborne transmission of coronavirus has been a pressing concern for many experts. Water droplets that come from breathing or coughing are relatively short lived, but airborne transmission implies that the disease will linger in the air long after an infected person leaves an area. Airborne contagion is also concerning because it makes the disease much more difficult to trace.
A new preliminary study published in the New England Journal of Medicine looked at the viability of COVID-19 (and a related virus) in the air and on different surfaces. To study airborne viability, coronavirus was dispersed as an aerosol, and the air was tested over time to see if the virus could still be detected. The researchers found that a significant amount of virus could be found even after 3 hours. This strongly suggests that airborne transmission is possible.
The authors also looked at virus viability on surfaces like metal and plastic over the course of three days. The viruses seemed to be quite stable on plastics, and was detectable after a full 72 hours. COVID-19 could survive for approximately two days on stainless steel, one day on cardboard, and about 8…
