For smoke watchers, the best time to view the smoke on May 7, the conclave's first day, is just after 7 p.m. (10 a.m. PDT, 1 p.m. EDT). On the following days, look for it around 10:30 a.m. (1:30 a.m. PDT, 4:30 a.m. EDT) and noon, and again at 5:30 p.m. and just after 7 p.m., according to Catholic News Service.

Pope Francis, who presided over the Roman Catholic Church and its estimated 1.4 billion followers for 12 years, died April 21.

With 135 cardinals eligible to vote, the coming conclave is set to be the largest in the history of the Catholic Church and one of the most unpredictable in decades.