Toward the beginning of the pandemic, a study showed that the SARS-Cov-2 virus can survive on cardboard for as long as 24 hours and on stainless steel for about 72 hours. Figuring out how long a contagious virus can survive on human skin isn’t an easy challenge as not many people are willing to have live SARS-CoV-2 smeared on them just for science. That’s why Japanese researchers used an unusual alternative -- human skin collected at autopsy about 24 hours after death. What they found was significant -- the SARS-CoV-2 virus could survive on human skin for nine hours -- significantly longer than the roughly two hours that the flu virus could remain a threat. More: More than just hand washing -- Teaching your children how to be clean, organizedMore: Coronavirus outbreak: How to wash your hands correctly