n front of thousands of followers, the animal has predicted that the winter weather will continue for six more weeks after emerging from its burrow and seeing its shadow on the ground.
The ceremony, held every February 2nd for 130 years now, took place in a festive atmosphere that included various musical performances and shows. It was past 1:00 PM (in Spain) when Phil was brought out of his burrow. As it was a sunny day, the groundhog saw its own shadow and, following tradition, immediately returned to its hiding place.
This method of prediction, although lacking any scientific rigor, follows a simple logic: if it's a sunny day and the animal sees its shadow, winter continues; if it's cloudy and it doesn't see its shadow, spring arrives earlier. This time, the forecast indicates that spring won't arrive early, but rather we'll have to wait until mid-March for the start of the new season.
The origin of this curious American tradition dates back to the Christian celebration of Candlemas Day, which also takes place on February 2nd. During this festivity, Christians brought candles to the church to be blessed, believing that this would protect their homes for the remaining winter period. Over the centuries, this religious tradition evolved into the media phenomenon that Phil now stars in Pennsylvania.