Did Punxsutawney Phil See His Shadow?
As far as Minnesota winters are concerned, the 2020-21 season hasn't been that bad. Not a ton of snow, not too many days below zero... it's been pretty smooth sailing.
However, I think most of us are ready to turn the calendar to spring. The only thing standing in its way is a chubby groundhog in Pennsylvania.
February 2nd is Groundhog Day, and it's also the day Punxsutawney Phil emerges from his hole and confronts the greatest weather predictor known to humankind: his own shadow.
If he sees the shadow, we are sentenced to six extra weeks of winter. If he doesn't, the rules say the snow has to instantly melt and we can all wear shorts forevermore.
So, did the lovable little guy see his shadow this year?
DARNIT. Keep those winter coats, mittens and stocking caps on standby because it's apparently going to be winter until July now. However, it turns out this highly scientific method of weather prediction might not be as accurate as you may think.
According to livescience, the groundhog is only right 39% of the time! That's... not a great track record (but arguably better than a lot of the human prognosticators.)