Biosecurity

The 9 most important unanswered questions about Covid-19

It’s easy to forget that just a few months ago, the virus that is causing the Covid-19 pandemic around the world was not known, at all, to science.

In the months and weeks since, researchers have been learning as much as they can about this pathogen — and at breakneck speed. Scientists have sequenced its genome and begun to create vaccines in the hope of making people immune to it. They’ve also learned, critically, that people can pass the virus on to others before they get symptoms themselves. That makes the virus hard to contain. But it also makes it clear that severe actions — like the social distancing measures in place in the US and around the world — are necessary in the fight to save lives.

We still don’t know how this pandemic will play out. That’s in large part because there are crucial unanswered questions about this virus and the disease it causes. For example, researchers don’t yet have precise estimates of how deadly the virus is or an exact understanding of how it spreads. The answers to these questions will provide key insights into stopping this pandemic in the least disruptive way possible.