All the world’s Covid could fit inside a 330ml drink can, mathematician calculates

'Would undoubtedly be the worst beverage in history,' concedes researcher

All the Covid-19 in the world could fit inside a 330ml can of fizzy drink - with some room to spare.

That's the conclusion a mathematician reached when asked to calculate how much of the virus is in circulation around the world.

Bath University mathematical sciences lecturer Dr Kit Yates worked out there are around two quintillion - or two billion billion - SARS-CoV-2 virus particles in the world at any one time.

His calculation underlines how so little virus can have such a big impact on making people sick.

In the UK alone, 12,364 tested positive for Covid-19 on 9 February, bringing the total number of infections since the pandemic began to just under 4 million.

Meanwhile, some 1,052 people died from the disease within 28 days of a positive test, government figures show.

"It's astonishing to think that all the trouble, the disruption, the hardship and the loss of life that has resulted over the last year could constitute just a few mouthfuls of what would undoubtedly be the worst beverage in history", said Dr Yates.

In coming to his conclusion, Dr Yates said he used the diameter of SARS-CoV-2 - at an average of about 100 nanometres, or 100 billionths of a metre - and then figured out the volume of the spherical virus.

Even accounting for the coronavirus's projecting spike proteins and the fact that the spherical particles will leave gaps when stacked together, the total is still less than in a single 330 millilitre (11.16 ounces) fizzy drinks can, Dr Yates added.

At least 2.3 million people have died globally since the pandemic began to take hold at the beginning of last year, while almost 107 million cases have been confirmed.

Vaccination programmes are beginning to be rolled out in some countries.

In the UK, more than 12 million people have recieved first vaccine dose. It is hoped the inoculation programme will bring an end to the country's national lockdown.