TEMPERATURE, HUMIDITY, AND RAINFALL: HOW DO THEY CORRELATE WITH COVID-19? A REVIEW OF THE SCIENTIFIC LITERATURE

Resumen

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has caught the attention of the scientific community. Most research revolves around the effects of the virus on people's health and the development of a vaccine to immunize the population. Studies on the relationship of the new coronavirus with meteorological factors such as humidity, temperature, and rainfall have also been numerous. However, the results have been ambiguous and, in some cases, contradictory. For this reason, this research aims to analyze in-depth the publications (peer-reviewed) that have studied the correlation between COVID-19 and meteorological factors, mainly. It was found that most research finds a negative relationship between cases of COVID-19 infection with temperature and humidity. There is no clear evidence linking rainfall to the spread of the pandemic. However, some results may be biased by the non-inclusion of essential variables such as population density, migration rate, family income, among others.