German aerosol experts says COVID spreads almost exclusively indoors

The following article was originally published by The Local DE on April 12, 2021 and was subsequently updated on April 18, 2021. The article covers a statement released by German scientists which criticized the government for limiting outdoor activity.

In an open letter addressed to Chancellor Angela Merkel, the leaders of the Society for Aerosol Research (GAeF) says that cluster infections of SARS-CoV-2 happens “almost without exception indoors…Outdoors, the virus is transmitted ‘extremely rarely'”.

The group stresses that coronavirus measures such as “bans on meeting in parks, closing popular routes for walks, or even night-time curfews give the impression that ‘it’s dangerous outside'” and does not reflect current scientific knowledge about the virus and its mechanisms of spread.

Editor’s Note: This article is a double-edged sword. On one hand, it is telling us that there is virtually no risk in contracting SARS-CoV-2 outdoors. This means that all the other coronavirus measures such as stay-at-home orders, work-from-home arrangements and masking can now be removed. Masking outdoors is illogical, based on the science that the group presents.

On the other hand, this article could be used by clueless governments to impose mask mandates and physical distancing inside the home. We think that if the SARS-CoV-2 spreads through aerosols, then masking will not work as aerosols are 5 μm (micrometer or micron, one-millionth of a meter) or less,^[1]https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanres/article/PIIS2213-2600(20)30323-4/fulltext while surgical masks cannot block particles smaller than 100 μm^[2]https://aapsonline.org/mask-facts/. Moreover, as aerosols are suspended in the air, then even physical distancing will not work.

Instead of obsessing on physical barriers and external measures for the general population, governments will do better if they begin understanding the human immune system so they can see how our bodies can naturally fight off disease. This way, the government can invest on true health which will have a long term effect on our physical wellbeing, instead of short-term solutions that have devastating impacts to societies. Extraordinary measures should be reserved for those who truly need it [read The Great Barrington Declaration: Life must return to normal for the healthy, the vulnerable must be protected and Dr. Knut Wittkowski: Lockdowns are creating a new epidemic].