Micro-droplets of infectious coronavirus could be airborne for hours and social distancing practices may not be enough to stop infection and spread, experts said.
In an open letter to the international science community, 239 health experts urge their colleagues to take airborne transmission seriously as COVID-19 cases rise in most parts of the USA.
Though most of the heavier respiratory droplets don’t reach more than 6 feet from a person, aerosolized droplets can span an entire room and hang in the air for several hours, according to the letter published July 6 in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.