What can the weather tell us about how coronavirus spreads in America? Researchers are investigating

[SheltieLover]

https://www.localmemphis.com/mobile/article/weather/accuweather/what-can-the-weather-tell-us-about-how-coronavirus-spreads-in-america-researchers-are-investigating/522-35d1dc7e-9cb3-4883-918b-34c283c9f633

The researchers who published an initial analysis in early March regarding the effect of temperature, humidity and latitude on the ability to predict the potential spread and seasonality of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, are now working with a team from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to advance their research.

The team's particular focus is to see if its hypothesis can be validated in the United States, "which has vastly different climatological areas within the continental U.S.," Mohammad Sajadi, one of the initial study's authors and an associate professor of medicine at the Institute of Human Virology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, told AccuWeather.

has been the country hardest-hit by the pandemic with more than half of a million infected and more than 25,000 fatalities blamed on the illness, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University.

The team's first step is to use the data it collects to "refine our definition of what are meteorologically favorable atmospheric conditions for the virus," Augustin Vintzileos told AccuWeather. He also was an author on the first study and is an assistant research scientist at the Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center at the University of Maryland.

[totodeinhere]

1. Interesting but the virus has spread in hot and humid areas of the world as well.

But studies like this are useful no matter what the conclusion is.

[SheltieLover]

2. I agree useful

But hot, humid, cold, dry...virus seems to thrive! 😢