NOT GOOD NEWS PEEPS
Groundhog: Six More Weeks Of Winter Ahead
Punxsutawney Phil Sees His Shadow
POSTED: Monday, February 2, 2009
UPDATED: 7:49 am EST February 2, 2009
PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. -- The world's most famous groundhog saw his shadow Monday, meaning, legend has it, that this already long winter will last for six more weeks.
Punxsutawney Phil's forecast was announced in front of thousands of revelers gathered at Gobbler's Knob in Punxsutawney, about 65 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, Pa.
They gathered Monday morning in near freezing temperatures, with many revelers buoyed by the Super Bowl victory by the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday night.
Punxsutawney Phil made his annual prediction early Monday.
German tradition holds that if a hibernating animal casts a shadow on Feb. 2 -- the Christian holiday of Candlemas -- winter would last another six weeks. If no shadow was seen, legend said spring would come early.
Since 1886, Phil has seen his shadow 97 times, has failed to see it 15 times, and there are no records for nine years, according to the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club. The last time Phil didn't see his shadow was in 1999.
The National Weather Service had predicted mostly cloudy weather for the Punxsutawney, Pa., area, but that didn't hamper Phil from seeing his shadow as some might have thought.
Thousands of people descend on Punxsutawney, about 65 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, each year for the tradition.