Vote: Cast. 🗳️ Facebook: Working again. 🙏

Voters across the country cast their primary ballots on Super Tuesday. My sister is recovering after a harrowing Facebook outage. And Liberty University was fined $16 million over its response to on-campus rape.

👋Hey, there! Laura Davis here on this Super Duper Tuesday. Here's what's happening in the news.

But first: Beam my vote up, Scotty. 🚀 Most people cast their votes in person. But the ballot box is a little far away for those aboard the International Space Station. Here’s how astronauts vote from space.

Who will make it to Election Day ballots?

Super Tuesday is here, and voters from coast to coast are casting their ballots and making their voices heard in the 2024 election.

What's in a name? Super Tuesday isn't just a cute moniker. It's the date the most states hold their primaries and caucuses – when the most delegates are at stake for presidential hopefuls fighting to earn their party's nomination.

Today's the day: Former President Donald Trump and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley are facing off in Republican races from California to Maine. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden is trying to build momentum as he seeks a second term in office.

Some questions: Does Haley still have a chance? Will Trump attract moderates? Will Biden overcome opposition among voters upset by his support of Israel? The polls start closing at 7 p.m. EST.

📍 Follow our live coverage for results.

• Kyrsten Sinema will not run for reelection, avoiding a messy three-way race in Arizona.

• California Senate race: Garvey, Lee, Schiff and Porter face off.

• Will Super Tuesday put the primary season out of its misery? | Opinion

• Gen Z is marked by Gaza. For Boomers it was Vietnam. Will it shape Super Tuesday and beyond?

🗳️📱 Text with USA TODAY politics: Elections news right on your phone. Text 301-888-6791 to sign up.

The Great Facebook Outage of 2024

When my phone lit up at 8:24 a.m. Mountain Time this morning and I saw it was my sister calling from Florida, I figured someone had died. We trade messages all day via Facebook Messenger, so it was weird to see her face popping up on my screen. Her garbled voice at the other end of the line didn't help matters: "I think blurghblah is GONE!!!!!" Luke? Her dog was gone? "NO. MY FACEBOOK IS GONE." Oh boy.

What happened? My distraught little sister was just one of hundreds of thousands of users who reported Facebook being down – and during one of the biggest election days of the year, no less. People using Meta-owned apps Instagram and WhatsApp also reported issues. By 11:45 a.m. EST, many users said their service had resumed as normal, and Facebook said a "technical issue" was to blame for the site being down. I'm also thrilled to report that after a time on millennial life support (scrolling Shein, then a nap), my sister has made a full recovery from her time off Facebook. 👉 Everything we know about the outage.

Real quick

• Nick Swardson blames drinking, edibles for disastrous standup show.

• Narcan in hand, they're saving lives on the opioid epidemic's front lines.

• Why Jason Kelce's teary retirement speech carries an important message for men.

• He bought his son a gun. His son committed mass murder. Is dad to blame?

• Lance Bass on aging, fatherhood: 'I need to stop pretending I'm 21'

• Chilling news: The Arctic could become 'ice-free' sooner than projected.

Support the Short List and become a USA TODAY digital subscriber today.

Bitcoin hits new record high

In the latest surge in the roller-coaster journey of the world's largest digital currency, Bitcoin jumped to a record high on Tuesday. The price briefly crossed $69,000, surpassing its prior all-time high of $68,990.90 from Nov. 10, 2021, according to the Wall Street Journal. Bitcoin's price has risen dramatically over the past year, fueled by new regulatory approval for exchange-traded funds in the digital currency. The vote in January opened up bitcoin investing to a larger swath of the American public, including potential investors who never quite understood what bitcoin is or how it works.  💰 A closer look at what's behind the surge.

Response to sexual assault on campus leads to historic fine

Liberty University will face a $16 million penalty for creating a culture where students were afraid to report when they suffered sexual violence. The sanction, announced on Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Education, is the largest of its kind. The investigation was completed under the Clery Act, a federal law that requires universities to track crimes on their campus and warn students of danger. A preliminary Education Department report in 2023 found that, “victims of sexual assault felt dissuaded by Liberty administration’s reputation for punishing sexual assault survivors rather than helping them.” 🔍 Here’s what led to the penalty.

A break from the news

• 🏝️ 8 cheap spring break trips that don’t skimp on fun.

• 🐰 The bunny is coming! 45 fun toys and treats for kids' Easter baskets.

• 💊 Do you bring your prescription when you travel? How to avoid getting it confiscated.

Laura L. Davis is an Audience Editor at USA TODAY. Say hello: laura@usatoday.com.  Support quality journalism like this? Subscribe to USA TODAY here.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Super Tuesday, Facebook, Instagram down, Bitcoin record high: Tuesday's news