The numbers drawn Wednesday night were: 5, 16, 22, 23, 29 and Powerball of 6.

A lottery official said late Wednesday that the jackpot rose to $579.9 million by the time of the drawing, making the cash option $379.8 million.

Americans went on a ticket-buying spree in recent days, the big money enticing many who rarely, if ever, play the lottery to purchase a shot at the second-largest payout in US history.

Tickets were selling at a rate of 130,000 a minute nationwide — about six times the volume from a week ago.

The jackpot had already rolled over 16 consecutive times without a winner, but Powerball officials said earlier Wednesday they believed there was a 75 percent chance the winning combination will be drawn this time.