PUNXSUTAWNEY — It’s already been a long, cold winter, and on Monday, Punxsutawney Phil predicted it will last a bit longer — six more weeks at least.
The weather-predicting groundhog saw his shadow, which means no early spring for us.
Tens of thousands of people gathered at Gobbler’s Knob for the annual ritual that goes back more than a century, with ties to ancient farming traditions in Europe. Punxsutawney’s festivities have grown considerably since the 1993 movie “Groundhog Day,” starring Bill Murray.
Icy temperatures kept the crowd bundled up — by all accounts the mercury remained in the low single-digits in the hours before the prognostication. It was 2 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.
Dance music and likely a desire to stay warm kept people on the main stage dancing — including a cold looking beauty queen. The Groundhog Day traditions include festive hats — and on Monday they were helping stave off the brutal cold.
The crowd and performers danced to tunes such as “Shout” And “Sunday Finest” in the cold weather.
As tradition goes, when Phil sees his shadow upon emergence from his tree stump in rural Pennsylvania, it’s considered a forecast for six more weeks of winter. If he doesn’t see his shadow, an early spring is said to be on the way.
Last year’s announcement was six more weeks of winter, by far Phil’s more common assessment and not much of a surprise during the first week of February. His top-hatted handlers in the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club insist Phil’s “groundhogese” of winks, purrs, chatters and nods are being interpreted when they relate the meteorological marmot’s muses about the days ahead.
Lisa Gibson of Pittsburgh was at her 10th Groundhog Day, wearing a lighted hat that resembled the tree stump from which Phil emerges shortly after daybreak.
“Oh man, it just breaks up the doldrums of winter,” said Gibson, accompanied by her husband — dressed up as Elvis Presley — and teenage daughter. “It’s like Halloween and New Year’s Eve all wrapped up into one holiday.”
Gibson was rooting for Phil to not see his shadow and therefore predict an early start to spring.
“I think it’s just fun — folks having a good time,” said Rick Siger, Pennsylvania’s secretary of community and economic development. He was attending his fourth straight Groundhog Day in Punxsutawney. “It brings people together at a challenging time. It is a unifying force that showcases the best of Pennsylvania, the best of Punxsutawney, this area.”
U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick was among the political figures drawn to the Gobbler’s Knob stage on Monday — noting that his mother was from Punxsutawney.
Also spotted were state Treasurer Stacy Garrity, who is currently pursuing the governorship, and top state Senate Republicans Joe Pittman and Kim Ward.
AccuWeather’s chief long-range weather expert, meteorologist Paul Pastelok, said some clouds moved into Punxsutawney overnight, bringing flurries he called “microflakes.” He said the coming week will remain cold, with below average temperatures in the eastern United States.
As for long-range forecasts, Pastelok said: “The farther out you get the accuracy is not specifically on point all the time, but we can get trends.”
Phil isn’t the only animal being consulted for long-term weather forecasts Monday. There are formal and informal Groundhog Day events in many places in the U.S., Canada and beyond.
Groundhog Day is the midpoint between the shortest, darkest day of the year on the winter solstice and the spring equinox. It’s a time of year that also figures in the Celtic calendar and the Christian holiday of Candlemas.
But let’s take a bit of a deeper dive with Phil and his family.
First, a little jaunty bluegrass tune about him to warm us up, courtesy of the Slocan Ramblers.
Now, this may come as a surprise, but ol’ Punxsutawney Phil did not, in fact, train in any kind of meteorology. He couldn’t tell a cumulus cloud from a cirrus cloud if you gave him a book with photos.
But that doesn’t mean groundhogs are useless when it comes to science. The SciShow details how they’ve aided scientific research over the years. In particular, naturalist and historian Albert Miller’s discovery of what looked like ancient spear tips — which he found in a hole excavated by one of the local groundhogs — turned to be the Meadowcroft site west of Pittsburgh where some of the oldest evidence of human life in North America was discovered.
One would be remiss if there wasn’t a reference to Bill Murray’s classic 1993 time-loop comedy, which shares its name with the holiday. Here’s the scene where Murray’s weatherman discovers his unfortunate situation.
Courtesy of hilarious comedian Tony Baker, here’s a viral video of a groundhog casually eating a slice of pizza as two dogs watch with envy and anxiety.
The Weather Channel isn’t just going to stand by and let Punxsutawney Phil get all the credit. Enjoy a guest appearance by their special February correspondent, Chuck Burrows.
And then there’s always a marmot being cleaned by a guy with a paint roller. Enjoy.
Come to think of it, why are groundhogs so difficult to get out of your yard? Insider Science explains.