Europeans do not have an equivalent of Groundhog Day. In Canada and the US, Ground Hog Day is a silly annual festival, held in late winter, to 'predict" how soon Spring will come to the area, Groundhog Day in the US (as seen in the Bill Murray film) is 2nd February. Early in the morning, of the " Day ", a tame Ground Hog, is observed, to see if there is enough daylight for him " to see his shadow ". The result means either 6 more weeks of winter weather, or a earlier than normal spring thaw of the lakes and rivers, which are frozen in winter in Canada. A number of towns hold such a "Ground Hog Festival" as a tourist boost for the town. Some attract huge crowds, as much as 25,000 people to a town with a normal population of 5,000. The Day is allways held on a week end to get maximum attendance, and TV stations all ways send a camera crew to do a "live remote shoot". It is all in fun, and nobody takes it seriously at all. Pre-Christian Celts observed solar cycles halfway between each solstice and equinox; these are called Quarter Days. On Quarter Days, the "veil" between this world and the Otherworld or spirit world is thinnest. This is the best time to see into the future, with the aid of the spirits. On Samhuin (now Halloween) one dresses as a ghoul so that spirits intent on mischief would mistake you for one of their own and pass by. Groundhog day corresponds to Imbolc, therefore it has the prognostication aspect. Hedgehogs are "used" in Britain. Don't pick one up - they're loaded with fleas. The underlying principle behind Groundhog Day in North America was almost certainly brought over by settlers from western Europe. Both in England and Scotland there are old weather sayings about the same date (2 February) which is celebrated in many Christian traditions as the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the popular name for which is Candlemas. All these sayings are similar; one example is: "If Candlemas Day be fair and bright Winter will have another fight; But if Candlemas Day brings clouds and rain, Winter's gone and won't come again." The principle behind the rhyme is this: in NW Europe (including the British Isles), sunny weather in early February is normally associated with anticyclonic weather, which often persists for long periods and brings long periods of cold, frosty weather. Cloudy, rainy weather is usually associated with depressions coming in from the Atlantic and the weather is consequently less cold, snow and frost appearing only briefly, if at all. The important thing is that by early February the weather is normally set in a pattern in that one or other of the above types tends to persist, usually for several weeks.
I think its because the groundhogs maybe build their burrows beside lot's of trees so they can get air. I had this question on a school assignment and pretended i didn't see coz i didn't know the answer lol.
Yes. Groundhog day (Feb 2nd) is not a holiday. Unless Groundhog days falls on a Saturday or Sunday then there is school.
If the groundhog sees it's shadow that means there will be 6 more weeks of winter.
odd hours to me mean 1:00, 3:00, 5:00, 7:00 ...ect.ect.ect.
According to Groundhog Day folklore, if the groundhog emerges from his burrow and sees his shadow, winter will last another six weeks. If the groundhog does not see his shadow, then spring will arrive early.
Around the fifth century, the European Celts believed that animals had supernatural powers at certain times of the year. Folklore from Europe indicated that animals, such as bears and groundhogs, if they came out of hibernation too early; would be frightened by their shadow and retreat back inside for four to six weeks.
See the Related Links for "Chanelling" to the bottom for the answer. I don't really think so. The responsibility is still ours to prove the validity of any information we take in by checking it out through our experiences. I suspect that most channellers have the intention to aid others in what they are doing. I don't personally know any. The wisest man I ever met warned that, just because someone is not currently in the physical doesn't mean that they know any more than you do. He was probably one of the most highly developed on this planet. Depends. Most who participate in these occult practices are authentic, however, it is the source of their power that is in question, not the validity. Some are out for money. Some are merely deceived into channeling demons not dead people.
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The name of the Groundhog is Punxsutawney Phil.
You can tell if you as the human observer can alsosee his shadow. Really what it comes down to is whether it is a clear enough sky that day/moment to cast a distinct shadow, or cloudy enough to not do so.
According to the StormFax Almanac the groundhog's seasonal forecasting accuracy is somewhat low. Punxsutawney Phil's winter prognostications have been correct only 39% of the time.
Punxsutawney Phil has been making his predictions for about 125 years
No, for 2011, there was no shadow, Punxsutawney Phil predicts an early Spring.
The base altitude of a cumulus cloud depends on the humidity of the lower level of the atmosphere. The more moisture in the atmosphere, the lower the cloudbase.
Meteorologists measure the temperature and dew point of the air (the dew point is the temperature at which water will start to condense out of the air). As the air rises, the temperature of the air will fall at the dry adiabatic lapse rate (approximately 3°C per 1000 ft of altitude) whereas the dew point will fall at 0.5°C per 1000 ft. When the air temperature falls to the local dew point, water will start to condense out of the air and begin to form a cloud. This is the cloudbase.
For 2011, there was no shadow, Punxsutawney Phil predicts an early Spring.
it will be the third day from today (or the day after tomorrow).