When Will the Mega Millions Winner Be Announced?

The Mega Millions multi-state lottery drawing took place Tuesday night and many are wondering when the winner will be announced. There is so much traffic on the website, that it has been minimized to a single page to allow as many people access as possible. If there was a winner, that fact and the location the ticket was purchased will be announced Wednesday morning.

The jackpot is a hefty $355 million, a boon after taxes, no matter which state the winner resides in. 41 states, including Illinois, Texas, Massachusetts and California, and the District of Columbia are participating in the lottery. The current jackpot ties for the fourth largest ever.

Chances of Having Mega Millions Winning Numbers

The winning numbers drawn were 4-8-15-25-47. The Megaball is 42 and Megaplier is 4.

The chances of picking Tuesday night's Mega Millions' winning numbers are over 1 in 176,000,000. Players are 352% more likely to be struck by lightening this year (a 1 in 500,000 odds), as winning the Mega Millions jackpot.

In fact, (if female) you are more likely to birth identical quintuplets, than win the $355 million. Those chances are 1 in 57,000,000.

In case you were wondering if anything was less likely to happen than hitting this lottery nirvana, players are more likely win the Mega Million, than to spontaneously combust. There are only 200 possible cases sited of spontaneous human combustion in the last 300 years.

Let's face it...someone is going to win.

Mega Millions Payout Chart

According to the pay chart, there are nine different prize tiers, ranging from $2 to the jackpot. Odds are much better that you will win something, at 1 in 40. Even a two dollar prize will double your dollar ticket investment.

The lowest prize level is for matching the Megaball. It advances from there with winnings available for amount of drawn numbers matched and amount of numbers matched plus the Megaball. The jackpot is won by matching all six numbers and the Megaball.

Some states are offering the possibility of multiplying lower tier winnings as much as four times, by using a Megaplier. California winnings are based on the amount of tickets sold.

No Winner Equals Largest Mega Millions Jackpot Ever

If the Mega Millions drawing passes by again without a winner, the jackpot will skyrocket up to around a record-setting $480 million. This possibility would herald the largest Mega Millions haul in history. Not bad for what was a $242 million prize on New Year's Eve.

The current largest jackpot was in March 2007, at $390 million. This bounty was split by two winners in Missouri.

If the winnings do go up, consider purchasing gas on Thursday. Stations will likely be packed on Friday, Jan. 7, which would be the next drawing date if no winner is announced.