Number 42

In SuperEnalotto under the 6/90 + 1/90 · Dec 1997 – Jul 2009 rules — 1,425 draws, 6 from 1–90 (an earlier era).

93times drawn · chance expected 95 −0.21σ

37draws waiting · a wait this long: 8% for any number

14.8average wait between appearances · chance says 15.0

61longest completed wait · 77% chance of one at least that long

42 is drawn as often as chance explains

Drawn 93 times in 1,425 draws against 95.0 expected, −0.21σ. Each draw is independent: after 37 draws away it is exactly as likely tonight as a number drawn yesterday. It has also come out as the bonus ball 14 times, counted separately.

Number 42, draw by draw

Drawn 93 times in 1,425 draws · average wait 14.8 draws · longest completed wait 61 · waiting 37 draws now

a completed wait — darker is longer the wait still running — a lower bound, not a finished gap

Where it lands in a sorted draw

Sort a draw and 42 has a favourite seat — chance gives a small number the low positions more often. That is the shape of sorting, not of the machine.

1st smallest7 · chance 3.8
2nd smallest23 · chance 17.9
3rd smallest29 · chance 31.8
4th smallest20 · chance 26.9
5th smallest13 · chance 10.9
6th smallest1 · chance 1.7

Every position’s lane →

The company it keeps

Seen most often with these — chance gives every partner about 5.2 shared draws, and the leaders are simply the ones that came out ahead this time.

88 1 72 6 64 70

It has shared a draw with every one of the other 89 numbers; chance expected about 0.5 still unmet by now. Every pair →

How many people play it

Under the crowd model, 42 is picked about 0.86× as often as an indifferent choice — 38th most popular of 90. That changes nothing about whether it comes up, and everything about how many ways a jackpot on it would be shared.

Numbers above 31 ×0.86

The model and its sources → · What people believe about 42 →

Every draw it appeared in

Date	Wait	Position	The draw
2009-04-04	14	6th	2 3 4 27 34 42
2009-03-03	52	3rd	20 39 42 45 74 77
2008-11-03	24	4th	16 21 33 42 52 66

What this cannot tell you

Nothing here predicts the next draw. A number’s history is a record of a fair machine’s past, and the machine keeps none of it: 42 is drawn with probability 6/90 tonight whatever it did last week.

2006-10-14	28	4th	12 37 38 42 79 82
2006-08-10	27	3rd	6 9 42 48 81 87
2006-06-08	16	2nd	5 42 51 66 69 74
2006-05-02	15	2nd	22 42 52 55 62 74
2006-03-28	5	4th	24 25 33 42 57 89
2006-03-16	11	4th	8 10 15 42 48 51
2006-02-18	1	3rd	34 40 42 64 77 88
2006-02-16	2	5th	5 6 18 34 42 72
2006-02-11	24	5th	1 2 8 30 42 43
2005-12-17	1	3rd	20 23 42 70 80 90
2005-12-15	21	3rd	6 26 42 51 60 79
2005-10-27	21	2nd	17 42 62 67 77 79
2005-09-08	30	1st	42 64 79 84 87 89
2005-06-30	27	3rd	6 27 42 49 82 86
2005-04-02	2	3rd	7 24 42 49 54 65
2005-03-26	10	1st	42 55 59 61 70 73
2005-02-19	22	5th	22 26 32 38 42 86
2004-12-04	22	4th	20 24 38 42 44 79
2004-09-18	7	5th	2 21 24 27 42 68
2004-08-25	1	4th	1 27 37 42 53 61
2004-08-21	3	2nd	32 42 55 74 78 88
2004-08-11	6	2nd	6 42 43 46 53 70
2004-07-21	12	4th	8 13 31 42 58 88
2004-06-09	2	5th	1 2 26 31 42 64
2004-06-03	10	3rd	13 16 42 61 63 81
2004-04-28	37	2nd	35 42 60 88 89 90
2003-12-20	1	4th	3 36 40 42 54 59
2003-12-17	25	3rd	1 3 42 48 73 83
2003-09-20	8	1st	42 44 51 64 65 77
2003-08-23	1	2nd	6 42 68 70 75 87
2003-08-20	4	5th	8 9 10 18 42 63
2003-08-06	43	4th	8 21 24 42 72 73
2003-03-08	23	4th	8 27 34 42 83 88
2002-12-24	12	4th	1 3 6 42 81 83
2002-11-23	6	2nd	14 42 68 69 80 85
2002-11-02	19	5th	1 15 22 33 42 80
2002-08-28	19	3rd	1 7 42 49 77 88
2002-06-22	9	3rd	16 37 42 46 60 64
2002-05-22	8	4th	12 26 27 42 66 89
2002-04-24	1	2nd	27 42 45 62 74 87
2002-04-20	9	2nd	19 42 45 51 62 88
2002-03-20	38	3rd	15 35 42 45 55 77
2001-11-10	11	3rd	1 34 42 50 70 72
2001-10-03	36	2nd	14 42 45 49 71 86
2001-05-30	5	3rd	11 18 42 44 45 83
2001-05-12	7	4th	3 32 37 42 43 89
2001-04-18	24	5th	10 26 32 41 42 54
2001-01-24	1	2nd	29 42 56 65 80 90
2001-01-20	18	4th	14 25 28 42 82 90
2000-11-18	3	3rd	3 21 42 49 64 85
2000-11-08	31	2nd	22 42 50 53 78 83
2000-07-22	18	3rd	10 13 42 54 66 81
2000-05-20	6	4th	19 32 41 42 67 77
2000-04-29	14	2nd	8 42 45 59 68 88
2000-03-11	21	2nd	28 42 46 56 74 87
1999-12-29	3	4th	14 15 20 42 70 88
1999-12-18	13	2nd	13 42 57 61 63 82
1999-11-03	24	2nd	19 42 64 68 72 86
1999-08-11	9	5th	10 19 24 29 42 67
1999-07-10	38	3rd	1 4 42 67 75 77
1999-02-27	22	3rd	6 7 42 55 75 88
1998-12-12	1	5th	9 37 39 40 42 86
1998-12-09	16	3rd	1 11 42 43 61 81
1998-10-14	1	3rd	15 28 42 55 76 88
1998-10-10	24	1st	42 43 46 49 52 76
1998-07-18	4	3rd	1 36 42 71 72 88
1998-07-04	27	2nd	29 42 49 52 53 67
1998-04-01	5	3rd	17 31 42 43 55 72
1998-03-14	—	3rd	16 33 42 86 88 89