Air pollution in northern China worsens

BEIJING, Oct. 10 (UPI) -- The smog hanging over Beijing and the rest of northern China intensified Friday, reducing visibility and moving pollution indices to hazardous levels.

An orange alert, the second-highest level on a warning scale, was issued for the second day in Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei province. The level of PM2.5 particulates in the air, which are hazardous to human health, reached 454 micrograms per cubic meter Friday, the Beijing Municipal Environment Monitoring Center said. The figure was 359 on Thursday; the World Health Organization recommends exposure to no more than 25 micrograms per 24-hour period.

The elderly, and those with lung problems, were advised to stay indoors. A soccer team of Brazilian all-stars, in Beijing for a match Saturday, did the same.

Amateur astronomers, of whom there are many in China due to the country's long tradition of astronomy, were unable to see the "blood moon" through their telescopes Thursday night.

The current conditions are a result of auto and factory emissions, coal-fired power plants and farmers across northern China burning stalks of crops harvested in the autumn.