DTRA-funded aerosol study of a lethal hantavirus: A July paper in Pathogens reports researchers deliberately aerosolized Sin Nombre virus (SNV)—a rodent-borne hantavirus with ~30% fatality and no approved vaccine or treatment—under a Defense Threat Reduction Agency grant. Aerosolization and airborne stability measured: Using a 120 kHz ultrasonic nozzle and the Bio-ARC system at UNMC, scientists produced submicron and ~1–2 µm particles and tracked how long SNV remained infectious under controlled humidity, ozone, and simulated sunlight conditions. Dual-use and safety concerns: Although framed as “biodefense” (to understand SNV decay and prevention), the experiments involve the same technical steps (stabilizing aerosols, lung-penetrating particle sizes) that could enable weaponization or pose accidental-release risks, prompting alarm from critics.