A recent NASA photo may provide evidence of water on Mars.

A Romanian TV station is reporting that there will be an announcement from the Vatican at 3:00 AM Eastern time, according to MSNBC. There is no independent confirmation of this report.

If there is an announcement, it’s unclear what will be, or who will make it. But it looks like I may not be going to bed just yet…

UPDATE: “It appears that no statement is forthcoming.” –Jon Siegenthaler, MSNBC.

Notre Dame will hold a Candlelight Rosary Prayer Service in honor of — or perhaps, by then, in memory of — Pope John Paul II tomorrow (Saturday) night at 7:45 PM at the Grotto.

I went down to the Grotto this evening, to check out the scene and say a prayer myself. The crowd was relatively small — perhaps a dozen people, if that — and of course, the contents of their thoughts and prayers are between them and God. But somehow I doubt I was the only one who said a prayer for the Pope.

I took a few pictures (from a respectful distance, and without flash, of course). You can see them above and below, and also here.

I also stepped briefly into the Basillica, and noticed a picture of the Pontiff, surrounded by several baskets of flowers, on the altar. Apparently it was put up late Friday afternoon.

Full photo gallery here.

It’s off to the Big House for Gov’ner Johnny, who today reported to prison and was given a new identity, of sorts: inmate number 15623-014.

Somehow I doubt Prisoner Rowland will be breaking out into song anytime soon, though. The scansion wouldn’t really work anyway: “Who am I? One-five-six-two-three-dash-oh-one-FOUR!!!” Nope… definitely doesn’t work. :)

With all the important news about the Pope to report, I neglected to mention that USC won the NIT last night. Alas, not that USC — the “other” USC, the University of South Carolina Gamecocks.

So, say it loud and say it proud, Cock fans: “We’re #66!” :)

As mentioned previously, the NIT championship game did not have any impact on the final standings of my NIT pool, which was won by Tom Keck, a graduate of the real USC. :)

Also, Southwest Missouri State won the WNIT. Their coach, apparently delusional, referred to it as a “national championship.”

Butter and Hugh Manatee:

Awww.

The AP is now reporting that the Vatican denies reports that the Pope has died, according to CNN.

Miles O’Brien says John Paul II is “clinging, ever so precariously, to life.” He adds: “The Vatican, while denying the reports of the Pope’s passing, says there is no hope for his recovery.”

Thousands have gathered in St. Peter’s Square, and Cardinal Ruini is about to lead them in prayer.

Ruini is the vicar for the Pope, and it is his responsibility to make the official announcement that John Paul II has died, when that time comes. But he is not expected to make an announcement of any kind right now — just to lead prayers.

Drudge is also now referencing the AP report, and he has removed the headline “REPORT: POPE DIES IN ROME” from his homepage. Here are a couple of screenshots:

1:45 PM

1:59 PM

UPDATE: “Tonight, Christ opens his doors to John Paul II.” –person leading prayers in St. Peter’s Square (according to CNN translation)

CNN-TV says there are “conflicting reports among Italian media about Pope’s condition.”

Drudge still has the headline “REPORT: POPE DIES IN ROME,” but he also has the report: “ITALY’S SKY ITALIA QUOTING VATICAN SOURCES SAYS POPE’S BRAIN, HEART STILL FUNCTIONING.”

But CNN-TV is now saying that the proper translation of the Sky Italia report is that the Pope is braindead, but his heart is still functioning. (His EEG shows no brain activity, but his EKG still shows heart activity.)

Miles O’Brien just made the inevitable Terri Schiavo analogy.

CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta says that, if the Italian report is correct, the Pope must be on a respirator.

UPDATE: The AP casts doubt on the braindeath report:

The Italian news agency ADNKronos, without citing sources, reported that a brain monitor hooked to the pope had gone flat. But a senior Vatican official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press that the pope was still alive and that there was no such monitoring device in his apartment.

Drudge is reporting that Pope JP II is dead.

In a turn of events I’ll be following closely, South Carolina lawmakers are in the process of passing a bill that would mandate at least partial insurance coverage for the mentally ill. Personally, I’m all for it, mostly because I’d benefit directly from legislation like this. In my case, I’ve tried to get coverage from four insurers that cover this area, and each time, I’ve been turned down for having bipolar disorder or for having been hospitalized. Fact is, if bipolar disorder is their criterion for rejection, I’ll never be able to get health insurance, and that seems unjust.

This entire system is heading for a trainwreck anyway. When a patient in New Zealand can buy a drug for $23 and I pay $235, something’s gotta give, despite the power of the pharmaceutical lobby.

In a sad demonstration of what American college liberals have become, a protestor at Western Michigan University doused Pat Buchanan with salad dressing while yelling “stop the bigotry.”

For those of you ever moderately interested in pop culture, you’ll be salivating to know that an American Idol contestant was arrested for a domestic violence felony, which he later pleaded (pled?) down to a misdemeanor.

Fark.com has an interesting April Fool’s Day display on their site.

In other news, Catholic schools are in trouble as more people opt for public schools. Not to say that priests are molesters, or that they even teach in Catholic schools, but it seems to me that this drop in attendance may be related to the recent barrage of bad press.

And in the most amusing/horrifying find of the day, the government has produced a darling site for parents who don’t know what to tell their kids about sex. Apparently, “intimate skin to skin contact” is sex, so damn, I get laid a lot more than I thought. The site is creating controversy because it promotes abstinence, which the ACLU calls “value-ridden.” In all seriousness though, because the vast majority of the population doesn’t practice and doesn’t believe in abstinence, it seems like a rather ineffective approach to educating those frisky teenagers.

CNN reports:

Pope John Paul II’s condition was “very grave” after he suffered cardiocirculatory collapse and septic shock, a Vatican spokesman said Friday.

It was the first time the Vatican had used such language to describe the pontiff’s latest health crisis.

The deputy to the Vatican spokesman denied media reports that the pope had fallen into a possible coma. …

Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls denied media reports the ailing pontiff had suffered a heart attack.

He described the pope as lucid and serene and said the pontiff was being treated in the Vatican because it was his desire to remain in his residence and not return to the hospital. …

A Vatican official said earlier that the pope appeared to be responding well to antibiotic treatment for a urinary tract infection that caused him to develop a fever.

Apparently a pirate is running for student body president at North Carolina State University.