PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Saturday, June 1, 2013

Saturday gives us a chance at some decent air for a bit, but not for the entire day.  After midnight, the PM2.5 levels should be in the Unhealthy      range, but they should begin to decrease around sunrise.  In the best-case scenario, we will see PM2.5 levels drop into Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      or Moderate     , but it is also possible that the pollution will remain in the Unhealthy range.  Either way, we should then see some increase in PM2.5 levels in the late afternoon and evening hours. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Friday, May 31, 2013

Friday looks to be a mixed bag for air quality in Beijing.  In the morning hours, we should see rising PM2.5 levels that spend most of the time at Unhealthy     , but by late morning or early afternoon we should see those levels dropping.  We should move down into Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      and possibly into Moderate      by the late afternoon and early evening hours.  After sunset, look for levels to move back up a bit. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Thursday, May 30, 2013

Thursday's air quality will not be quite as good as Wednesday's, but it still should be better than Beijing's normal air quality.  We should see rising PM2.5 levels in the morning, reaching into Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      and Unhealthy     .  Then in the afternoon, we should see slightly decreasing levels. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Wednesday should give us a good day for air quality.  We should see falling PM2.5 levels in the pre-dawn and morning hours when we should settle into the Moderate      or Good range     .  We may see a slight increase in levels in the evening hours into Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups     , but this looks to be a better than average day all around. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Tuesday should start off with fairly high PM2.5 levels in Beijing, Unhealthy      or Very Unhealthy    , but we should see some clearing in the morning to early afternoon hours.  We are likely to move into Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      and Moderate      by late afternoon/evening before we see levels start to increase again.

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Friday, May 24, 2013

Friday should give Beijing a brief respite from the high PM2.5 levels.  After a tough start of the day at Very Unhealthy     , look for levels to fall all the way down to Moderate      or Good      by late morning or early afternoon.  But this clearing will likely be short-lived, and we should see rising PM2.5 levels after sunset. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Thursday, May 23, 2013

Thursday's graph should look familiar by now; it's the same pattern we've seen several times over the last couple of weeks.  After starting out at Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups     , we should climb up into Unhealthy      and possibly Very Unhealthy      before PM2.5 levels begin to drop around late morning or noon.  Late afternoon and early evening should give us the best air quality of the day, even giving us a chance at Moderate      quality for a while.

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Wednesday will be another poor air quality day for Beijing.  Look for increasing PM2.5 levels after midnight, putting us at Unhealthy      or Very Unhealthy      for the morning hours.  Levels will likely stay high all day, but we should see a decrease in the afternoon hours - if we're lucky, we could see a drop down into Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups     .

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Tuesday, May 21, 2013

After a brief respite, we're back to poor air quality on Tuesday.  The PM2.5 levels should keep us in the Unhealthy      and Very Unhealthy      range the entire day.  We should see our highest levels in the late morning/noon hours or after sunset. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Monday, May 20, 2013

After a bit of a sandstorm that led to mostly clear skies on Sunday afternoon and evening, Beijing should see a relatively good air quality day on Monday.  PM2.5 levels should be level in the early morning hours, likely in the Moderate      to Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      ranges, but should move upward gradually during the daylight hours.  In the evening, we will likely see additional increases, possibly into the Unhealthy      range. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Sunday, May 19, 2013

Sunday will bring us a chance to breathe some cleaner air.  PM2.5 levels may increase in the early morning hours, but by mid-morning or early afternoon, we should see the pollution settle into the Good      and Moderate      ranges.  As usual, there is a chance of increasing PM2.5 levels after dark, so we could see levels move up to Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups     .

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Saturday, May 18, 2013

Saturday should give us a repeat of the trend from the last three days - increasing PM2.5 levels in the early morning, decreasing levels in the afternoon, and a slight increase in the evening hours.  We should see Unhealthy      and Very Unhealthy      levels in the morning, then Unhealthy      and Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      in the afternoon and evening. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Friday, May 17, 2013

Friday should be Day 3 of what is becoming a familiar pattern for the PM2.5 pollution in Beijing.  PM2.5 levels should increase through the morning, decrease in the late morning and afternoon, then increase again in the evening hours.  We should spend most of the day in the Unhealthy      range, but we could see levels at Very Unhealthy      throughout the day or at Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      in the afternoon and evening hours.

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Thursday, May 16, 2013

Thursday's air quality looks to be nearly a repeat of Wednesday's.  Look for rising PM2.5 levels in the morning and falling levels beginning around late morning until early evening when levels tick back up.  Most of the day should be spent in Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      or Unhealthy     , but we could see levels above or below that at the peaks. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Beijing's brief reprieve from poor air quality will be ending tomorrow as we watch PM2.5 levels climbing again.  There's a chance of seeing good air in the early morning hours, but we should see levels climbing through Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups and Unhealthy throughout the day.  There is a good chance that we will see those levels go up into Very Unhealthy as well before the day is over. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Tuesday should bring us clear skies for a brief time.  Look for us to move down through Very Unhealthy     , Unhealthy     , and Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      in the morning hours before we reach Good      and Moderate     .  The good air should last most of the day, but don't be surprised if we see levels tick back up in the evening hours as we get set for another round of high PM2.5 levels. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Monday, May 13, 2013

Monday should be a transition day for air quality.  We're looking for a clearing on Tuesday, and the lead up to that event is difficult to predict.  We should see increasing PM2.5 levels overnight and through the morning, likely into Unhealthy      but possibly to Very Unhealthy      as well.  We should also see some clearing after noon.  This may continue through the evening, or we could see another uptick in the evening before Tuesday's clearing.  

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Sunday, May 12, 2013

Sunday should bring us increasing levels of PM2.5 here in Beijing.  Look for levels to trend up into Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      and Unhealthy      throughout the day.  There is also a chance that we could see some times in the afternoon and evening in the Very Unhealthy      range.

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Saturday, May 11, 2013

We've seen PM2.5 levels rising since early this evening, but that trend should stop and then reverse in the early morning hours.  Beijing's levels should drop through Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      before getting to Moderate      and Good     , but the weather conditions tomorrow are variable enough that we could bounce around anywhere in that range.  We are most likely to see this volatility in the late afternoon, so the morning and early afternoon should be the best time to be outside. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Friday, May 10, 2013

It has been 9 days since we last saw "Good" air quality here in Beijing, but tomorrow should be the end of that streak.  After starting off at Unhealthy     , we should see levels drop through Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      and Moderate      and then into Good     .  We could see the Good air as early as 7 or 8AM or as late as late afternoon, but we should see it before the end of the day.

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Thursday, May 9, 2013

Once again, we're looking at a bad air day for Beijing tomorrow.  After the slightly lower PM2.5 levels on Wednesday evening, we will likely start Thursday off at Unhealthy     .  Then weather conditions overnight should give us significantly increasing PM2.5 levels.  Look for us to move into Very Unhealthy      and likely into Hazardous      conditions as we progress through the morning.  Levels should then spend the rest of the day in Very Unhealthy, although there is some chance that we will drop back into Unhealthy.  

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Beijing's PM2.5 levels for Wednesday are looking very similar to Tuesday's.  We should start off after midnight at Unhealthy      or Very Unhealthy     , then we should see rising levels into mid-morning when we have a chance of moving up into Hazardous     .  In late morning or early afternoon, we should see PM2.5 levels begin to fall.  The graph shows some orange for Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      in the afternoon hours; although it is possible for levels to drop this far, it is not likely.  We can expect similarly poor air quality for Thursday, but extended forecasts for Friday are showing a good chance for clear skies in the afternoon. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Tuesday's air quality will be an improvement over Monday's, but don't get too excited - we will not be having a "good" air quality day.  After midnight, look for the AQI to be somewhere in Unhealthy      or Very Unhealthy     .  There should be some increase in pollution levels throughout the morning, but we should see decreasing levels in the late morning or afternoon.  We may make it down into Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      by evening, but this is a fairly low probability. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Monday, May 6, 2013

For Monday, it looks like we're in for a very bad air day here in Beijing.  We should be starting off at Very Unhealthy      or Hazardous      , but PM2.5 levels should decrease throughout the day.  If we're lucky, we may end up back down in Unhealthy      before the day is over. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Sunday, May 5, 2013

Sunday's air quality looks to start out similar to Saturday's, but there is a greater potential for levels of PM2.5 to accumulate to a greater extent.  Look for levels to start out as Unhealthy      after midnight, then gradually increase until approximately noon, possibly into Very Unhealthy     .  There is some chance of seeing slightly reduced levels in the evening, but mixed weather forecasts also present the possibility of levels staying in the Very Unhealthy range into Monday. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Saturday, May 4, 2013

Saturday's PM2.5 forecast for Beijing is similar to Friday's but presents a chance for better air.  It is most likely that we'll see air in the Unhealthy      range for the entire day, but there is a decent chance of dipping into Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      and a slight chance of moving all the way down to Moderate      during the afternoon and evening hours. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Friday, May 3, 2013

Friday brings us day 2 of this round of poor air quality in Beijing.  In the early morning hours, we may see PM2.5 levels in the Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups range     , but that should move into the Unhealthy range      by the morning commute or mid-morning at the latest.  There is also a decent chance of moving into Very Unhealthy      in the afternoon hours. 

PM2.5 Forecast for Beijing - Thursday, May 2, 2013

Thursday should bring slightly higher PM2.5 levels to Beijing.  After midnight, we should begin in the upper part of Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups      or the lower part of Unhealthy     .  Levels should gradually increase through the morning, possibly into Very Unhealthy     , then stabilize for the rest of the day.