Strong winds carrying dust from Mongolia swept into Beijing early Saturday morning, worsening the city's air quality.

 

The dust storm passed by Saturday afternoon, and local meteorologists say the city's air quality will improve on Sunday.

 

According to the Beijing Environment Monitoring Center, on Friday afternoon a sandstorm swept across a large part of Mongolia and then joined with heavy winds from northern China. The winds brought the dust to Beijing at around 5:00 AM on Saturday when the city recorded dust density of 1,000 micrograms per cubic meter per hour, the center said.

 

It is the third time Beijing has experienced weather caused by a sandstorm from a foreign nation this year, a meteorologist said.     

 

Reports show that as of Saturday, Beijing had 16 days of clear skies in March, slightly fewer than normal.

 

(Xinhua News Agency March 27, 2006)