First day of voting does not determine new pope.

247, with Reuters - As predicted, the 115 cardinals gathered in the Sistine Chapel did not reach a conclusion on who should be the new pope on Tuesday the 12th, the first day of voting. Black smoke, a sign of an inconclusive vote, was released around 17:40 PM in the Vatican (15:40 PM Brasília time).

According to the Vatican spokesman, it was likely that Benedict XVI's successor would not be decided on the first day of the conclave. "After the meditation, it is possible that the cardinal electors will hold the first vote, which is unlikely to have a positive result, precisely because it is the first," said Father Federico Lombardi.

The smoke rising from the burning of ballots containing the cardinals' votes indicates that the two-thirds majority needed to elect a new pope was not reached. A crowd waited in St. Peter's Square, in the rain and cold, and received with lament the news that the voting had not yet concluded. Two votes will be held on Wednesday morning and two more in the afternoon.

Below are the main facts about the conclave -- one of the oldest and most secretive electoral processes in the world.

WHO - 115 cardinals who were under 80 years old at the time of Benedict XVI's abdication are participating. Two other cardinals who would have been within the age limit declined to attend – one for health reasons, and the other due to his involvement in a sex scandal. There are also 90 cardinals over 80 years old who are not participating. The person to be elected pope does not need to be one of the cardinal electors, but in modern practice he always is.

The cardinal-electors come from 48 countries. Europeans are the majority (60 out of 115), followed by 19 from Latin America, 14 from North America, 11 from Africa, 10 from Asia, and 1 from Oceania. Italians make up the largest national group (28 cardinals), followed by North Americans (11 cardinals), Germans (6), Brazilians and Indians (5 each).

WHERE - The cardinals begin their meeting at 16:30 PM (12:30 PM Brasília time) in the Sistine Chapel, under Michelangelo's frescoes depicting the Last Judgment and biblical scenes such as the famous image of God's and Adam's fingers almost touching, in a representation of the creation of man. The cardinals will sleep in a Vatican hotel, behind St. Peter's Basilica. They will be prohibited from communicating with the outside world—no telephone, television, or internet.

HISTORY - The word "conclave" (from the Latin "cum clave," meaning with key) dates back to the prolonged election of Celestine IV in 1241, when the cardinals were locked in a dilapidated palace. In the 13th century, there was a conclave that lasted two years, nine months, and two days. The average duration of the nine conclaves of the 20th century was about three days. The last conclave, in 2005, took just over 24 hours to elect Joseph Ratzinger (Benedict XVI).

VOTING - The cardinals will hold their first vote on Tuesday, using ballots marked "Eligo in summum pontificem..." ("I elect as Supreme Pontiff..."). From Wednesday onwards, there will be two votes each morning and two in the afternoon. Voting will be suspended on Saturday if the new pontiff has not been elected by then. To be chosen, the candidate needs a two-thirds majority (at least 77 votes).

SMOKE - After the voting, the ballots are burned, and their smoke escapes through an improvised chimney above the Sistine Chapel.
Smoke signals inform the world whether or not the cardinals have elected a new pope. Black smoke indicates an inconclusive vote. White smoke—accompanied by the ringing of bells in St. Peter's Basilica—reveals that a pope has been chosen.
The expectation is that the smoke will be visible daily around 12 pm and 19 pm (8 am and 15 pm in Brasília). But it may appear earlier if the new pope is elected in the first vote of one of those periods.

"HABEMUS PAPAM" - When a pope is elected, a cardinal appears on the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica and announces, in Latin: "Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum: habemus papam" ("I announce to you a great joy: we have a pope"). He announces the new pope by his baptismal name, with the given name translated into its Latin version, and then announces the name that the elected pope will adopt during his pontificate.
The most frequent papal names to date have been John (23 times), Gregory (16), Benedict (16), Clement (14), Innocent (13), Leo (13) and Pius (12).

After the announcement, the new pope appears for his first public address and his first "Urbi et Orbi" ("to the city and to the world") blessing, before the crowd gathered in St. Peter's Square.

(Reporting by Crispian Balmer)