Colorado Researchers Track Coronavirus

Colorado Researchers Track Coronavirus

Maura Bennett
Maura Bennett

CSU scientists are investigating whether environmental changes affect the spread of the novel coronavirus. Using the same tools used to build drought forecasts, they could eventually build maps that forecast the virus.

Matt Rogers is a research scientist at CSU’s Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere. He tells Colorado Ag Today that the project started after a colleague, John Forsyth, came across a paper that links temperature and relative humidity to the virus’ growth.

Rogers: This is the same forecast for temperature and relative humidity and then we’re taking an equation developed by epidemiologists to come up with a number called a Reproductive Index. That is how many times an infected person is expected to spread the virus. That number is right around 3.6 we think. But it is using the exact same tools. There’s some research that suggests that temperature and relative humidity can have an impact on how fast the virus spreads.”

It is early days into the research and Rogers says they are limited due to the lack of widespread Covid-19 testing. Rogers says their research will be assisted by the information that epidemiologists are gathering daily about the virus. Right now there are many unknowns.

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