Five years after COVID-19 first hit the United States, scientists are already brainstorming how to stop the next big virus.
One possible solution? A special kind of ultraviolet light called far-UVC, CBS News reported.
Unlike regular UVC light, which can be harmful to people, far-UVC has a shorter wavelength. That means it can kill viruses and bacteria in the air without damaging your skin or eyes.
“UV light really doesn’t care about the details of whether it’s a bacteria or a virus. It can kill all of them, essentially,” Columbia University physicist David Brenner said.
Right now, far-UVC is being tested in places like a Boston nightclub, a dental clinic at Columbia as well as a rehab center at Mount Sinai Hospital.
Researchers are using special rooms to see how well the light works in real life.
The rooms allow them to control airflow and humidity and measure how much virus is in the air before and after using the light.
“I’d say the development has been slow and steady,” Brenner told CBS News.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says far-UVC looks promising, but more research is needed to confirm that it’s safe and effective.
David Putrino, a professor at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City, installed the lights at a rehabilitation center.