Black Smoke Emerges from Sistine Chapel as Cardinals Fail to Elect a New Pope

The world's attention is fixed on the chimney atop the Sistine Chapel, situated in Vatican City.

VATICAN CITY — On Wednesday, black smoke was visible from the Sistine Chapel's chimney. This indicates that the 133 cardinal electors have not reached the required two-thirds majority needed to choose the next pope.

Earlier on Wednesday, cardinals from the Roman Catholic Church convened in the Sistine Chapel to begin the process of selecting a successor for the estimated 1.4 billion Catholics around the globe.

Inside the Sistine Chapel: The Papal Conclave

Voting will resume for the cardinal electors on Thursday morning. They will continue casting votes four times daily until a candidate for the papacy achieves a two-thirds majority. Should they fail to elect a pope after three days, a day will be dedicated to prayer before voting continues.

Anticipation fills Rome as a diverse crowd flocks to Vatican City. The Via della Conciliazione, which leads to St. Peter's Square, is bustling with pilgrims, media, cardinals, and curious spectators, all eager to catch a glimpse of this conclave's proceedings.

After the first day of the conclave has ended, cardinals will participate in a Mass on Thursday morning and reconvene in the Sistine Chapel to vote once more. If the choice remains undecided, an additional vote will occur immediately. Then, voting will proceed with two sessions in the afternoon and continue with the same pattern of two sessions each in subsequent mornings and afternoons until a decision is reached.