Advertisement

Think You Won't Get Coronavirus Outside? Think Again.

Months into the coronavirus pandemic, researchers are finally getting a better handle on how the virus spreads. Yes, it can be transmitted on surfaces, but the primary source of new infections is close, person-to-person contact.

And there is also growing consensus among experts that being outdoors is less risky than being inside.

“It is safer,” said Kimberly Prather, a professor of atmospheric chemistry with Scripps Institution of Oceanography in California who is an expert in aerosols. Prather told HuffPost that air and wind can quickly dilute the virus.

But they’re not magic.

So if you’re heading outdoors, here are some safety steps experts say you should still take.

Wear a mask.

Mask wearing has become woefully tied up in politics, but there is mounting research showing it’s one major way to help halt the spread of Covid-19. Even researchers who say that the current data is somewhat limited still say that wearing a mask is a good idea.

That’s because of how the virus spreads.

It passes from one person to the next through respiratory droplets that are not only released when a person coughs or sneezes, but also when they talk or breathe — which means you cannot stay healthy simply by steering clear of people who seem obviously unwell. (Also, while there is no clear consensus on how common asymptomatic spread is, estimates suggest anywhere between 40% and 80% of cases are mild or symptom-free.)

Many experts, including Prather, also now believe that Covid-19 can be transmitted via aerosols — basically, really tiny particles that can hang in the air for some time. For that reason, Prather has been beating the “wear masks” drum for months now, and recently published a piece in the journal Science that argued for universal masking.

“What people have missed for a long time, and now it seems to finally be catching on, is that when you have big drops from a cough or sneeze — or when people are talking, or singing, or breathing, you produce...

Continue reading on HuffPost