The article links to this paper which describes it as an exponential decay process. For exponential decay you would normally describe it using a half-life and they do that in the paper. The...
The article links to this paper which describes it as an exponential decay process. For exponential decay you would normally describe it using a half-life and they do that in the paper. The half-lives are estimated to be hours. So for example, copper is pretty good with a half-life estimated between 2.4 and 5.11 hours. I have seen that simplified elsewhere to saying that the virus lasts 4 hours on copper.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that people take steps to clean and disinfect surfaces. But the durability of some coronavirus on a surface does not mean that it remains just as infectious as the hours go by. Most virus particles degrade in a matter of minutes or hours outside a living host, and the quantity of infectious particles goes down exponentially over time.
Although it is theoretically possible for a person to become infected a day or two after someone has deposited virus particles (for example, by sneezing) on a surface, it is much less likely than in the first couple of hours after the sneeze, said Munster.
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The U.S. strategy for slowing the spread of the coronavirus is currently focused on social distancing, in recognition of the fact that human beings are vectors of covid-19. Simultaneously, people in the United States have been urged by the CDC to clean and disinfect surfaces in their homes. The CDC has put forth guidance on how to blend a disinfectant solution from bleach — five tablespoons (1/3 cup) of bleach per gallon of water (and never mix bleach with ammonia or any other cleanser).
Amid these precautions, people should understand that surfaces that contain the virus — known to scientists as fomites — are not the major drivers of this pandemic. Covid-19 is primarily spread through direct person-to-person contact.
The article links to this paper which describes it as an exponential decay process. For exponential decay you would normally describe it using a half-life and they do that in the paper. The half-lives are estimated to be hours. So for example, copper is pretty good with a half-life estimated between 2.4 and 5.11 hours. I have seen that simplified elsewhere to saying that the virus lasts 4 hours on copper.
From the article:
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