Spring snow falls in Beijing after heavy fog A citizen waits for taxi in snow in Beijing, capital of China, March 18, 2012. Snow hit Beiji...

Spring snow falls in Beijing after heavy fog

A citizen waits for taxi in snow in Beijing, capital of China, March 18, 2012. Snow hit Beijing from late night of Saturday to early hours of Sunday. (Xinhua/Li Jundong)

People take photos of a snow-covered corner tower of the Forbidden City in Beijing, capital of China, March 18, 2012. Snow hit Beijing from late night of Saturday to early hours of Sunday. (Xinhua/Lai Xiangdong)

Photo taken on March 18, 2012 shows the snowy scenery in Beijing, capital of China. Snow hit Beijing from late night of Saturday to early hours of Sunday. (Xinhua/Gong Lei)

Photo taken on March 18, 2012 shows the snowy scenery of the Tian'anmen Rostrum in Beijing, capital of China. Snow hit Beijing from late night of Saturday to early hours of Sunday. (Xinhua/Lai Xiangdong)

BEIJING, March 18 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese capital was blanketed by spring snow on Sunday morning, after a day of heavy fog that has grounded hundreds of flights in the country's north.

Rain began to hit Beijing Saturday evening and later turned into snow. As of 6 a.m. Sunday, snow has accumulated to as deep as eight centimeters in parts of the city.

Light snow continued Sunday morning but the National Meteorological Center said on its website that it would stop later in the day.

Hundreds of flights were canceled Saturday at the Beijing Capital International Airport as dense fog reduced visibility. The airport said early Sunday that the snow would continue to affect flights.

On Saturday, airports in Tianjin, Shijiazhuang, Zhengzhou in north China were all enveloped in dense fog, with the visibility in Tianjin's airport less than 50 meters.