Meteorologists won’t rely on a groundhog for their predictions the rest of the winter, but the forecasts for this weekend gave some clues to what will happen on Groundhog Day.
Punxsutawney Phil emerged to some falling snow on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2021, and saw his shadow, predicting six more weeks of winter.
Keep your fingers crossed, Phil has predicted an early spring two out of the last three years. Not surprisingly, that’s been a rarity over the event’s 136-year history.
Will Phil see his shadow?:Groundhog Day 2022 prediction: See if Punxsutawney Phil will see his shadow on Wednesday
Last year’s Groundhog Day results:Groundhog Day 2021 prediction: 6 more weeks of winter as Phil sees his shadow
The legend of Punxsutawney Phil:Can a fuzzy rodent predict the weather better than a meteorologist? Groundhog Day explained
What is the legend of Groundhog Day anyway?
According to the legend:
If Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter weather. If he does not see his shadow, there will be an early spring.
That’s how the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club describes the Feb. 2 tradition, marking the midway point of winter.
Is the tradition scientific? Absolutely not.
Are there other furry, weather-predicting animals? Certainly.
But the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club has declared Phil the authoritative groundhog in this quirky myth.
Wacky traditions:Groundhog Day: 5 bizarre things you didn’t know about this quirky tradition in Pennsylvania
Groundhog Day explained:Origins of wacky tradition, why sunny weather means more winter
Predictions for 2022 in Punxsutawney
Read below for expectations of the conditions in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, for Groundhog Day 2022.
AccuWeather is predicting it will be cloudy with a high of 45 degrees and a low of 38 and a 9% chance of precipitation.
The Weather Channel predicts a 30% chance of rain at night.
Phil will have the last word, though.
