Washington: Research is going on in many countries to better understand Coronavirus. A recent study by the University of Bristol’s Aerosol Research Center has shown that the coronavirus loses most of its ability to infect after being in the air for more than 20 minutes after exhalation. Especially the possibility of spreading its infection over long distances is very less.
According to a Bloomberg report, researchers found that the coronavirus loses 90% of its infection capacity 20 minutes after being exposed to the air. It loses most of its potential within the first five minutes of reaching the air. These things came to the fore in an ongoing study on how the virus behaves after exhaling.
The results of this study, which have not yet been peer-reviewed, corroborate the notion that the virus primarily spreads over short distances. Therefore, it is better to wear social distance and mask to prevent infection.
Researchers in the UK focused on the first three variants of the coronavirus for this research, which did not include the most recent Omicron variant, but said they do not expect the other variants to behave differently.
The study found that in places where humidity levels are less than 50%, such as the dry air found in offices, the virus loses half of its ability to spread within five seconds. Whereas, when the humidity level rises to 90%, such as in a shower room, the virus gradually loses its infectivity. During this, more than half the particles were found to be infectious even after the first five minutes.
