As the regularity of mass shootings increases, the number of fatalities increases as well.

The figures for 2012 are particularly high because it includes the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, where 20 children and six adult staff members were killed, as well as the Aurora movie theater shooting, where 12 people were killed and 70 others injured.

Mass shootings that occurred since 1982 tend to align somewhat with population centers, as many took place near the East Coast and along the West Coast.

Similarly, there is a notable gap in the upper Great Plains-Rocky Mountain area.

ABC News' Emily Shapiro contributed to this report.

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