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6 More Weeks Of Winter? Punxsutawney Phil Might Be Wrong This Time

Spring has already sprung in parts of the Southeast, experts say.
Posted at 12:25 PM, Feb 02, 2017

Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow Thursday morning, supposedly dooming us all to six more weeks of winter.

"I clearly see a perfect, clear shadow of me. Six more weeks of winter it shall be," a Punxsutawney official said.

Well, maybe not. There's a chance Phil might be wrong this year.

Plant scientists say spring has already sprung in parts of the Southeast.

Green leaves have even been spotted in some areas, more than 20 days sooner than they normally do.

And weather experts are predicting above- or near-average temperatures across the U.S. for the rest of the month.

But Punxsutawney Phil isn't perfect.

According to data compiled by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, since 1988, Phil has been "right" 14 times and "wrong" 15 times.