In the past couple of weeks Michigan has gotten a lot of snow, making it seem like this winter won’t end, and according to Puxsawany Phil, we still have six more weeks. On Feb. 2, Punxsutawney Phil the groundhog will emerge from his burrow and determine if winter will be longer or shorter by seeing his shadow. If Phil the groundhog sees his shadow that means winter will be six weeks longer, and if he doesn’t see his shadow then that means an early spring will come.
This bizarre tradition started around 1887 in Punxsutawney, PA. It all started when German immigrants brought the new tradition to the United States. South student Brooke Hepner ’27 expressed how she ponders on the odd tradition and how it can affect people’s feelings and the groundhog itself.
“There’s not really [a significance], it’s an animal’s shadow that has nothing to do with the weather, like I just want spring and Groundhog Day ruins it for me,” Hepner said. “It’s lowkey animal abuse, like they force a happy critter out of its home and make it the center of a holiday that is useless.”
For some, like Hepner, Groundhog Day can bring disappointment when Phil sees his shadow or if he predicts an early spring and winter is still there. Phil the groundhog is about 35 percent accurate according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which can bring even more disappointment to some. English teacher Sandra McCue, who is also a weather spotter, explains how Groundhog Day is truly just lighthearted fun.
“I don’t think [Groundhog Day] is practical at all. It doesn’t really seem like it’s based on science but even the science of weather prediction can get it wrong because there are so many factors that go into what the next day or week is going to look like,” McCue said. “Weather is everyone’s best guess, so I guess Groundhog Day is not that far away from it in some ways.”
Many factors can go into weather like cloud formation, the severity of precipitation and the temperatures, and the idea of Groundhog Day can contradict science, but many still find the holiday amusing. On the other hand, Steven Warnick ’29 isGroundhog Day’s biggest fan, and it’s all due to the movie “Groundhog Day” starring Bill Murray and Andie McDowell.
“I get mad when the groundhog makes winter longer, and I get sad when he dies and they replace him,” Warnick said. “But overall, it is a fun tradition and it should be a national holiday so we don’t have school.”
But alas, more winter is to come with this year, as Phil saw his shadow and made his prediction. Many other state groundhogs have said the same, while others said an early spring, but only time will tell what the weather will actually be like.
“I think [Groundhog Day] is just something that is mostly done out of fun, and mostly done as a reminder to people that even if the winter has been really cold and awful, that eventually spring comes,” McCue said.
