Punxsutawney Phil, the legendary rodent that foretells the weather every year on Groundhog Day, Feb. 2, will soon emerge from his burrow as the holiday approaches.
Before sunrise on Wednesday, Punxsutawney Phil will appear for the 125th time in the role of weather prognosticator. The ’seer of seers’ will then predict the nature of winter’s end from a temporary burrow erected at Gobbler’s Knob, in a rural area about two miles east of Punxsutawney, Pa.
According to American folklore, if the weather is cloudy when Phil emerges from his burrow, he will leave the burrow, indicating that an early spring will arrive. But if it is sunny, the groundhog will see his shadow and go back into his burrow, signifying that winter will continue for six more weeks.
At last year’s celebration, Phil, surrounded by an estimated 15,000 people, predicted six more weeks of winter. Phil has only predicted an early spring 15 times since he started doing so in 1887.
