Covid-19 can spread through tiny particles that can linger in the air for hours, according to new guidance from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC has until now not made a direct link about the role airborne transmission is playing in the spread of the virus.
But the US public health agency's new advice admits aerosolised virus particles can, and do, infect others under "certain circumstances".
The capacity of Covid-19 to spread through minuscule droplets, which float in the air long after an infected person coughs, breathes, or sneezes, was noted by authorities in China in February, very early in the outbreak.
There is evidence that under certain conditions, people with Covid-19 seem to have infected others who were more than six feet away
Dozens of studies conducted worldwide have since confirmed or suggested it, with growing evidence pointing to aerosol transmission.
Last month the CDC posted an update saying the virus could spread through aerosols, before hastily removing it, saying the advice was included in an “early draft” that had been published in error.
The new guidance acknowledges the virus can linger in the air – though it insists aerosolised transmission remains “uncommon”.
“There is evidence that under certain conditions, people with Covid-19 seem to have infected others who were more than six feet away,” says the guidance, which was issued on Monday.
“These transmission events appear uncommon and have typically involved the presence of an infectious person producing respiratory droplets for an extended time (greater than 30 minutes to multiple hours) in an enclosed space.
“Enough virus was present in the space to cause infections in people who were more than 6 feet away or who passed through that space soon after the infectious person had left.”
Circumstances where confirmed airborne transmission has occurred, according to the CDC, include in enclosed spaces, when people were exposed shortly after the infected person left.
Aerosolised transmission has also occurred when infected people were shouting, singing or exercising, which increased the concentration of “suspended respiratory droplets in the air space”.
In addition, inadequate ventilation can increase the risk of airborne transmission by allowing the build-up of “suspended small respiratory droplets and particles,” says the CDC.
The agency said most people become infected by inhaling large droplets through close contact with sufferers.
However, writing in the journal Science this week, a group of researchers suggested incidents involving aerosol transmission were more common than the CDC has acknowledged.
“Individuals with Covid-19, many of whom have no symptoms, release thousands of virus-laden aerosols and far fewer droplets when breathing and talking,” they said.
“Thus, one is far more likely to inhale aerosols than be sprayed by a droplet, and so the balance of attention must be shifted to protecting against airborne transmission.”
Cases in which the coronavirus spread through the air include a bus trip in China where 23 out of 68 passengers became infected with the virus, some of whom were sitting farther than the 6ft experts say large droplets can travel.
In another instance, a singer at a choir practice in the US spread the virus to 52 people, including one person who was sitting 45 feet away.
Mounting evidence prompted a group of more than 200 aerosol biologists and other experts to sign a letter addressed to the World Health Organisation in July calling for greater recognition of the role of aerosol transmission in the outbreak.
"It is becoming clear that the pandemic is driven by superspreading events, and that the best explanation for many of those events is aerosol transmission," Jose-Luis Jimenez, a researcher at the University of Colorado Boulder, and one of 239 scientists to sign the letter, told The Washington Post.
LA LIGA FIXTURES
Thursday (All UAE kick-off times)
Sevilla v Real Betis (midnight)
Friday
Granada v Real Betis (9.30pm)
Valencia v Levante (midnight)
Saturday
Espanyol v Alaves (4pm)
Celta Vigo v Villarreal (7pm)
Leganes v Real Valladolid (9.30pm)
Mallorca v Barcelona (midnight)
Sunday
Atletic Bilbao v Atletico Madrid (4pm)
Real Madrid v Eibar (9.30pm)
Real Sociedad v Osasuna (midnight)
Sreesanth's India bowling career
Tests 27, Wickets 87, Average 37.59, Best 5-40
ODIs 53, Wickets 75, Average 33.44, Best 6-55
T20Is 10, Wickets 7, Average 41.14, Best 2-12
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The years Ramadan fell in May
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
U19 WORLD CUP, WEST INDIES
UAE group fixtures (all in St Kitts)
- Saturday 15 January: UAE beat Canada by 49 runs
- Thursday 20 January: v England
- Saturday 22 January: v Bangladesh
UAE squad:
Alishan Sharafu (captain), Shival Bawa, Jash Giyanani, Sailles
Jaishankar, Nilansh Keswani, Aayan Khan, Punya Mehra, Ali Naseer, Ronak Panoly,
Dhruv Parashar, Vinayak Raghavan, Soorya Sathish, Aryansh Sharma, Adithya
Shetty, Kai Smith
'Panga'
Directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Starring Kangana Ranaut, Richa Chadha, Jassie Gill, Yagya Bhasin, Neena Gupta
Rating: 3.5/5
WORLD CUP SEMI-FINALS
England v New Zealand
(Saturday, 12pm UAE)
Wales v South Africa
(Sunday, 12pm, UAE)
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Match info:
Portugal 1
Ronaldo (4')
Morocco 0
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
The Written World: How Literature Shaped History
Martin Puchner
Granta
Ukraine
Capital: Kiev
Population: 44.13 million
Armed conflict in Donbass
Russia-backed fighters control territory
Dates for the diary
To mark Bodytree’s 10th anniversary, the coming season will be filled with celebratory activities:
- September 21 Anyone interested in becoming a certified yoga instructor can sign up for a 250-hour course in Yoga Teacher Training with Jacquelene Sadek. It begins on September 21 and will take place over the course of six weekends.
- October 18 to 21 International yoga instructor, Yogi Nora, will be visiting Bodytree and offering classes.
- October 26 to November 4 International pilates instructor Courtney Miller will be on hand at the studio, offering classes.
- November 9 Bodytree is hosting a party to celebrate turning 10, and everyone is invited. Expect a day full of free classes on the grounds of the studio.
- December 11 Yogeswari, an advanced certified Jivamukti teacher, will be visiting the studio.
- February 2, 2018 Bodytree will host its 4th annual yoga market.
FIXTURES
New Zealand v France, second Test
Saturday, 12.35pm (UAE)
Auckland, New Zealand
South Africa v Wales
Sunday, 12.40am (UAE), San Juan, Argentina
The biog
Name: Sari Al Zubaidi
Occupation: co-founder of Cafe di Rosati
Age: 42
Marital status: single
Favourite drink: drip coffee V60
Favourite destination: Bali, Indonesia
Favourite book: 100 Years of Solitude
Countries recognising Palestine
France, UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, San Marino and Andorra
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The specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo and dual electric motors
Power: 300hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 520Nm at 1,500-3,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 8.0L/100km
Price: from Dh199,900
On sale: now
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
Teams
Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
Timeline October 25: Around 120 players to be entered into a draft, to be held in Dubai; December 21: Matches start; December 24: Finals
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
