Will coronavirus infections slow down as spring arrives in the northern hemisphere?

Certainly this is what some political leaders seem to think. Donald Trump told a meeting of the nation’s governors in February that “the heat, generally speaking, kills this kind of virus”. Meanwhile, the UK’s health secretary, Matt Hancock, told ITV that the hope was to slow the spread of the virus so if it does cause a UK epidemic it arrives in spring and summer when coronaviruses are less transmissible.


In the world’s temperate regions seasonal flu and the “common cold” coronaviruses tend to spread more readily in winter. That may be because the air in the colder months is generally drier, both indoors and out, and dry conditions have been shown to favour flu transmission. Our immune systems are, on average, weaker in winter too – possibly due to less sunlight and lower vitamin D levels. We also tend to spend more time indoors in winter, often in crowded conditions.
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