Groundhog Day 2014: Sorry folks, looks like six more weeks of winter

It may be a little hard to believe with all the cloud covering the skies over Ontario and Pennsylvania early this morning, but Wiarton Willie and Punxsutawney Phil, the official prognosticators for the length of our winter woes, have both seen their shadows on this Groundhog Day 2014, proclaiming six more weeks of winter.

It was shortly after 8 a.m. Eastern Time that Wiarton Willie wrote, with a touch of apprehension, on his Twitter feed:

Just half an hour before, Punxsutawney Phil's proclamation went up on his website, stating:

It seems like a pretty safe forecast this year, given how the winter has been going so far for central Canada and the northeastern United States. Don't fret too much, though. These two aren't the only marmots in the business. Nova Scotia's Shubenacadie Sam got a jump on the other two this morning, and saw no shadow to speak of:

[ More Geekquinox: Weird Science Weekly: Larger testicles means more infidelity in female mates ]

When it really comes down to it, these furry forecasters don't have the best record for accuracy. Phil's track record (he's been in the 'business' longest) has shown that he's right less than 40 per cent of the time. Take last year. For Groundhog Day 2013, both Willie and Phil predicted an early spring, but we were still getting blasted by winter weather right up until the last days of the season. So, that was another bust on their part.

This year, though, Willie and Phil seem to have their human counterparts standing behind them in support. Environment Canada's seasonal forecast for the next three months shows below normal temperatures for nearly the entire southern part of Canada, so that would imply that our chilly winter weather is going to stretch on for some time.

(Photo courtesy: Reuters)

Geek out with the latest in science and weather.
Follow @ygeekquinox on Twitter!