Transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus depends on the season, but warm weather is not enough to contain the transmission of the virus from one person to another. This is the conclusion reached by experts from Imperial College London, whose research is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Scientists have demonstrated that air temperature and population density are the main factors that determine the rate of spread of the virus in the absence of measures that limit the mobility of the population, such as social isolation. This means that you can not give up lockdown and distance just because of the beginning of the summer season. At the same time, low temperatures in the autumn and winter months contribute to an increase in morbidity.
Environmental factors are known to influence infectious pathogens, such as influenza viruses and other coronaviruses. For example, high temperatures and low humidity reduce the transmission of airborne droplets through the respiratory tract, preventing the spread of influenza. High temperatures also inactivate other coronaviruses in the air and on surfaces. However, SARS-CoV-2 remained uncertain for a long time.
Despite the hot climates of India, Brazil, and Iran, these countries have high rates of disease, as population density has a greater impact on transmission than weather. At lockdown, when contacts between people are limited, the effect of temperature on the transmission of the virus was weak.
