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DoubleFelix t1_j701h2d wrote

Reply to comment by MisterPaulCraig in [OC] An interactive map of North America's prognosticating groundhogs by MisterPaulCraig

Which is weird; I'd expect a shadow to mean more sun to mean clearer skies to mean more spring-like. Maybe these groundhogs know something about meteorology that I don't.

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MisterPaulCraig OP t1_j70ro5f wrote

It's counterintuitive, but spring weather is usually pretty overcast and grey, which is what this comes from I think.

> Spring weather can be pretty miserable — oftentimes it’s grey and rainy and wet — whereas the middle of winter has plenty of bright, clear days where it is insensibly cold outside. Essentially, the Candlemas prediction assumes that overcast weather is a harbinger of spring, whereas a clear day means you’re still in the thick of winter.

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