The Brief

A $1.4 billion Powerball jackpot will be decided Wednesday after 40 drawings without a winner.

The odds of hitting the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million, though smaller prizes are more common.

The cash option for the prize is estimated at $634.3 million.

DES MOINES, Iowa - A record-breaking $1.4 billion lottery jackpot will be at stake Wednesday night after dozens of drawings have passed without a top winner.

Dig deeper:

The massive Powerball prize is the sixth-largest U.S. lottery jackpot. It's a result of 40 consecutive drawings stretching over the summer without anyone matching all of the game's six numbers.

Powerball lottery tickets pictured inside a store in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by GIORGIO VIERA / AFP) (Photo by GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty Images)

The backstory:

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