A Trump administration study found that heat, humidity, and sunlight make it harder for the coronavirus to survive on surfaces and in the air.
“Our most striking observation to date is the powerful effect that solar light appears to have on killing the virus, both on surfaces and in the air,” said Bill Bryan, the head of the Science and Technology Directorate in the Department of Homeland Security.
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The study found that exposure to sunlight, high heat, and humidity cuts the half-life of the virus on surfaces from up to 18 hours to a matter of minutes.
When the virus is exposed to sunlight, in addition to temperatures above 75 degrees with a humidity of about 80%, it can die in minutes.
“If you inject … the sun, the half-life goes from six hours to two minutes,” Bryan said. “That’s how much of an impact the UV rays has on the virus.”
Bryan touted the study as a way to see the “weak links” in the chain of virus transmission. Summer conditions, Bryan added, could decrease transmission, “and that’s an opportunity for us to get ahead.”
