Mega Millions $356M Lucky Numbers: 9, 19, 34, 44, 51, Mega Ball 24

The drawing for the third largest Mega Millions jackpot happened Tuesday night.

ByABC News
March 27, 2012, 4:40 PM

March 27, 2012 — -- The winning numbers for Tuesday's $356 million Mega Millions lottery jackpot, the third-largest prize in the game's history, were 9, 19, 34, 44, 51 and Mega Ball 24.

Mega Millions drawings are held Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m. EDT and tonight's drawing took place in Atlanta, Ga.

The largest Mega Millions jackpot ever won was $390 million in March 2007, according to Mega Millions.

The winner is selected through five balls drawn from a set of balls numbered one through 56, and one ball is drawn from a set numbered one through 46.

While there are nine ways to win a prize, starting from $2, ticket buyers across the country have their eyes on the $356 million jackpot, which has been growing since Jan. 24. That's when Mega Millions had its most recent jackpot winner, Marcia Adams, 33, from Georgia. She won $72 million and chose the cash option of $52 million.

The estimated jackpot is based on national sales up to the time of the drawing. In the last drawing, in which there was no jackpot winner, almost 2.9 million tickets won Mega Millions prizes.

The odds of winning the jackpot are approximately one in 176 million, according to the Mega Millions website. The odds of winning any of the Mega Millions prizes are approximately 1 in 40.