Punxsutawney Phil DID see his shadow yesterday, which means there will be six more weeks of winter. But the MOST accurate groundhog, Staten Island Chuck, did NOT see his shadow, so he’s predicting an early spring. That’s rough. Last month was the coldest January in the U.S. since 2014. And January 21st was the second-coldest DAY nationally in 29 years. And, of course, there was Winter Storm Enzo, which broke snowfall records across the South, including more than nine inches in the Florida Panhandle.
So this is GOOD news for people who love that. And it’s NOT terrible news for people who don’t, because Phil is wrong more than he’s right. Weather is different everywhere, but his historical accuracy is about 38%. The Weather Channel’s outlook for February shows warmer-than-average temperatures for most of the East and South . . . but a colder February for the Northwest, Northern Rockies, and Northern Plains.
But enough SCIENCE . . . back to GROUNDHOGS
A recent report said Punxsutawney Phil was the 17th most accurate weather-predicting groundhog in the U.S., with an accuracy of just 35% over the past two decades alone. The MOST accurate groundhog in that time, Staten Island Chuck out of New York, is right 85% of the time . . . and HE did NOT see his shadow, so he’s predicting an early spring. For what it’s worth, Phil has seen his shadow and predicted a long winter 108 times now . . . dating back to 1887. He’s predicted an early spring 21 times, and 10 years of records are missing.
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