‘Social Distance’ of 6 Feet Might Not Be Enough on Breezy Day

(Reuters Health) – A new model of how far saliva can travel after a cough suggests that current guidelines recommending that people keep six feet (two meters) away from others may not be sufficient on a breezy day to avoid droplets containing SARS-CoV-2.

Researchers using a fluid dynamics simulation determined that saliva droplets could travel as far as 18 feet (six meters) from a coughing or sneezing person, according to the results published in AIP Physics of Fluids.

“In open spaces, airborne droplets carriers can travel significantly further than the two meters recommended distance due to the wind speed,” said study coauthor Dimitris Drikakis, a professor in the science-engineering school and the medical school, as well as the Defense and Security Research Institute at the University of Nicosia, in Cyprus. “Our findings imply that depending on environmental conditions, the two-meter social distance may not suffice.”…