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Things you may not know about an AR-15

The 2nd Amendment has become a contentious topic of conversation, yet again, after the mass shooting in Orlando.
<p>An AR-15 is seen for sale on the wall at the National Armory gun store </p>

The 2nd Amendment has become a contentious topic of conversation, yet again, after the mass shooting in Orlando.

The debate regarding gun rights spans from one extreme to another. There's been a lot of coverage about the types of guns the shooters use in these mass shooting situations.

Here are a few facts about the A-R 15:

1. The AR-10 was designed by an engineer named Eugene Stoner, who worked for ArmaLite, in the mid 1950's. The original design was an entry into the U.S. Army's request for a proposal to replace the M-1 Garand battle rifle (the AR-10 is the same type platform as the AR-15, just a different caliber).

2. "AR" doesn't actually stand for assault rifle. It stands for the first two letters in "ArmaLite."

3. The AR-15 is a semi-automatic carbine. It's not actually an assault rifle, by definition. One round is fired per trigger pull (as opposed to multiple rounds being fired per trigger pull). It is gas operated, magazine fed, and air-cooled.

4. Semi-automatic means the firearm will fire a round, eject the casing, and load another round (but it will not fire the next round). There are many semi-automatic platforms, including handguns, shotguns, and hunting rifles.

5. The shooter in Orlando used a Sig Sauer MCX and a pistol, not an AR-15. However, the AR-15 continues to be one of the weapons that is widely discussed in the United States.

Thanks to the Arvada Police Department for helping clarify this information.

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