[Weather] Clear skies but fine dust levels remain high

Clear skies are expected Friday, but parts of the country will continue to see unhealthy levels of find dust, the weather agency said.

The average temperature for this time of the year is forecast for the day, with daytime highs of 3 to 11 degrees Celsius.

Morning temperatures recorded minus 4 C in Seoul, minus 7 C in Chuncheon, 2 C in Busan, minus 2 C in Gwangju, and 4 C in Jeju.

The northern part of Gyeonggi Province and Gangwon, North Chungcheong and Gyeongsang provinces will suffer from “unhealthy” levels of fine dust, while Seoul and other regions are to see moderate levels of fine dust, according to the National Institute of Environmental Research.

As of 10 a.m., real-time air quality index site (www.aqicn.org) showed Seoul’s air quality index at 90 for PM 2.5 particles, in the “moderate” category.

The level of ultrafine pollutants was in the range of 150 to 180 micrograms per cubic meter -- categorized as “unhealthy” -- in several regions.

By Jo He-rim (herim@heraldcorp.com)