Will Groundhog Day Bring Early Spring To West Michigan?
"I'm reliving the same day over and over again." -Bill Murray, Groundhog Day
Groundhog Day is approaching. It's Wednesday, February 2, 2022. The origins of Groundhog Day come from the Christian celebration of Candlemas which was held every February 2—exactly 40 days after Christmas.
- February 2, when the groundhog is said to come out of its hole at the end of hibernation. If the animal sees its shadow—i.e., if the weather is sunny—it is said to portend six weeks more of winter weather.
How Many Times Has The Groundhog Seen His Shadow?
The groundhog has seen his shadow 106 times. There was no shadow 20 times and no record of what happened 10 times. The tradition of Punxsutawney Phil (the groundhog) predicting the weather seeing his shadow began in 1887 and was boosted in popularity by the 1993 Bill Murray Film.
Will We Have An Early Spring in West Michigan in 2022?
"We are expecting close-to-average snow totals by the time the season is done, and we are expecting winter not to linger too far into spring."-WOOD TV
"sunny and mild-Feb 1 through Feb 6, 2022"-Almanac
"tilt towards a warmer and wetter than normal Spring. There is a 35% chance of a warm spring and about a 45% chance of a wet spring."-weather.gov
"cloudy with a high of 24 degrees" -WZZM TV
"official forecasts are pointing towards above-normal temperatures in the months ahead"-National Weather Service
How Accurate is the Groundhog?
The National Climatic Data center says Punxsutawney Phil yields a dismal success rate of around 50 percent. However, another popular groundhog, Staten Island Chuck is reportedly accurate almost 80 percent of the time.
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