America's top groundhog predicts 6 more weeks of winter

(Image credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

published 2 February 2015

Monday is Groundhog's Day, and Punxsutawney Phil, the Pennsylvania groundhog America strangely relies on to forecast the weather, saw his shadow. That means, according to lore, that America can look forward to six more long weeks of winter. Phil's record dates back to 1887, minus nine years, and the Punxsutawney mascot has seen his shadow 101 of those years, versus 17 Groundhog Days where he didn't. But hey, we all got a great Bill Murray movie out of the tradition.

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Peter Weber is a senior editor at TheWeek.com, and has handled the editorial night shift since the website launched in 2008. A graduate of Northwestern University, Peter has worked at Facts on File and The New York Times Magazine. He speaks Spanish and Italian and plays bass and rhythm cello in an Austin rock band. Follow him on Twitter.

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