VIDEO: New Visualization Shows the Six Feet Social Distancing Rule May Not Be Enough
Image from Florida Atlantic University/YouTube
Social distancing guidelines generally recommend people to remain at least six feet away from each other to lower the risk of spreading COVID-19, but according to a new visualization experiment, six feet may not be enough.
The visualization, created by researchers from Florida Atlantic University's College of Engineering and Computer Science, shows how far infected particles can travel after a person coughs and how long they remain in the air.
Watch the video to see how the particles spread after a cough:
The researchers found that "heavy coughs" can send infected particles up to 12 feet away and linger in still air for over one minute. "Light coughs" do not spread as far.
"We found that wearing a face mask doesn't stop the particles 100 percent, but it does slow down the cough jets," said Manhar Dhanak, chair of FAU's Department of Ocean and Mechanical Engineering, in a press release about the experiment.