What shape is the common cold virus?
There are more than 200 viruses that cause the "common cold".
40% of common colds are caused by the rhinovirus. It is a member of
the picornavirus family and is small, icosahedral (a 20-faced
polyhedron), non-enveloped virus containing one positive RNA
strand. Another type of virus that commonly causes a cold is the
coronavirus, which causes approximately 20% of common colds.
Coronaviruses are pleomorphic (take different forms over the life
cycle), but spherical in shape with large, widely spaced
club-shaped peplomers.