Fog shrouds east, central China; disrupts traffic

 　　BEIJING, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Heavy fog enveloped¹ a large swathe of east and central China Saturday, causing highway closures and flight delays in several provinces.

　　Beijing was shrouded² in dense³ smog for a second straight day Saturday. The smoggy weather will not clear up until Monday, the city's environment monitoring center said.

　　Beijing's air is heavily polluted. Readings for PM2.5, or airborne particles with a diameter of 2.5 microns or less -- small enough to deeply penetrate⁴ the lungs -- were as high as 456 on Saturday.

　　The elderly, children and those suffering from respiratory and cardiovascular diseases are advised to stay indoors to reduce exposure to polluted air.

　　Meanwhile, heavy fog has blanketed several regions in east and central China, including Hebei, Tianjin, Shandong, Henan, Jiangsu, Anhui, Jiangxi and Hubei provinces.

　　In Shandong, more than 20 highways were closed, as the fog reduced visibility in some areas to less than 50 meters, the provincial⁵ meteorological center said.

　　A total of 63 flights in and out of Shandong's eastern coastal⁶ city of Qingdao had been canceled or delayed by 2 p.m. Saturday, affecting about 5,000 passengers, according to airport administration authorities in Qingdao.

　　In Jiangxi, visibility in eight cities was reduced less than 500 meters. The fog forced five highways to close and delayed dozens of flights at an airport in the provincial capital of Nanchang on Saturday morning, according to local meteorological authorities.

1 enveloped   

v.包围，笼罩，包住( envelop的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She was enveloped in a huge white towel. 她裹在一条白色大毛巾里。
• Smoke from the burning house enveloped the whole street. 燃烧着的房子冒出的浓烟笼罩了整条街。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 shrouded   

v.隐瞒( shroud的过去式和过去分词 )；保密

参考例句：

• The hills were shrouded in mist . 这些小山被笼罩在薄雾之中。
• The towers were shrouded in mist. 城楼被蒙上薄雾。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 dense   

a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。
• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage. 小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。

4 penetrate   

v.透(渗)入；刺入，刺穿；洞察，了解

参考例句：

• Western ideas penetrate slowly through the East.西方观念逐渐传入东方。
• The sunshine could not penetrate where the trees were thickest.阳光不能透入树木最浓密的地方。

5 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

6 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。