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Ephemeris: 02/03/2025 – Did the groundhog see his shadow yesterday?

February 3, 2025 2 comments

Did it matter?

This is Ephemeris for Monday, February 3rd. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 55 minutes, setting at 5:54, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:57. The Moon, 2 days before first quarter, will set at 12:35 tomorrow morning.

I don’t know if Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow yesterday morning or not, but February 2nd was a special day to the ancients. It is celebrated as a cross-quarter day, the middle of the season of winter, though the real date of the middle of winter is tomorrow. And if Phil saw his shadow, and we do get 6 more weeks of winter, that’s OK too. By the calendar, it’s actually more like 6 ½ weeks to the vernal or spring equinox the official end of winter, plus this is Northern Michigan. I don’t know if Phil is any better or worse than the National Weather Service at long range forecasts. Of the other cross-quarter days, two others stand out. They are May 1st, May Day; and Halloween.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT – 5 hours). Times will be different for other locations.

Addendum

Microsoft Copilot AI image of a groundhog seeing his shadow
This is what I got from Microsoft Copilot AI when I asked for a an image of a groundhog with a night cap on standing in front of his burrow in the snow staring at his shadow. It’s interesting that the shadow of his body is off to the left, and the shadow of his head is to the right, and is mirror reversed. It’s a cool image nonetheless.
A real groundhog chewing on a bit of bread given by my granddaughter
A real groundhog chewing on a bit of bread given by my granddaughter Coley on the deck of a condo we were staying at in Virginia nine years ago.

Categories: Calendar, Ephemeris Program, Holiday, Seasons Tags: ,