How Long Can COVID-19 Stay Airborne?
COVID-19Common questionHow long can COVID-19 stay airborne?Transmission of COVID-19 from inhalation of virus in the air can occur at distances greater than six feet. Particles from an infected person can move throughout an entire room or indoor space. The particles can also linger in the air after a person has left the room – they can remain airborne for hours in some cases.
Can COVID-19 be transmitted through the air?
Aerosols are emitted by a person infected with coronavirus — even one with no symptoms — when they talk, breathe, cough, or sneeze. Another person can breathe in these aerosols and become infected with the virus. Aerosolized coronavirus can remain in the air for up to three hours. A mask can help prevent that spread.
Coronavirus Resource Center
How far can COVID-19 particles travel in the air?
The new findings support earlier work from researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which suggested that particles from a cough, buoyed by the warm air in our breath, could travel much farther than 6 feet
Coughs Can Send COVID Virus Farther Than 6 Feet
How long can COVID-19 linger in the air?
The smallest very fine droplets, and aerosol particles formed when these fine droplets rapidly dry, are small enough that they can remain suspended in the air for minutes to hours.
Scientific Brief: SARS-CoV-2 Transmission
How long can COVID-19 survive on surfaces?
Data from surface survival studies indicate that a 99% reduction in infectious SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses can be expected under typical indoor environmental conditions within 3 days (72 hours) on common non-porous surfaces like stainless steel, plastic, and glass .
Science Brief: SARS-CoV-2 and Surface (Fomite) Transmission for Indoor Community Environments