Coronavirus can survive on surfaces for days
Scientists have found that the coronavirus can remain viable and infectious in droplets in the air for hours and on certain surfaces for days. A team of researchers from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases used a device that duplicates the microscopic droplets created when an infected person coughs or sneezes. The virus-laden droplets landed on a range of surfaces and remained active for up to three days on plastic or steel, for 24 hours on cardboard, and only four hours on copper. However, the risk of catching the virus from home deliveries or takeout food remains low, says infectious disease researcher Joseph Vinetz from Yale University, who wasn’t involved in the study. “If somebody were to, say, cough on a box or on a letter,” he tells USA Today, “the chances of that remaining viable for the period of time it’s in transit seems extremely unlikely.” Likewise, the discovery that the coronavirus can remain viable for up to three hours in the air—which contradicts the World Health Organization’s position that the virus is not transported by air—shouldn’t worry most of the population. The germ lingers in the air at levels so low that only people in very close proximity could potentially be infected. But the finding may have repercussions for medical workers: When they remove their protective suits, they may throw off virus-carrying droplets that could potentially lead to infection.