Have a blast at Albuquerque's new nuclear museum

— -- Hot doings in Albuquerque this weekend with the opening of a museum devoted to things nuclear.

The former National Atomic Museum reopens Saturday as the National Museum of Nuclear Science & History in spacious new digs next to Kirtland Air Force Base. The name change reflects a broader focus beyond weaponry that includes nuclear medicine, nuclear power and more.

But fans of Cold War-era bombs and rockets will find replicas of the Fat Man and Little Boy atomic bombs and the 69-foot Redstone rocket planted outside the museum's former Old Town location. (The museum was once at the Kirtland facility, but moved after Sept. 11, 2001, to accommodate foreign visitors, who weren't allowed on the base.) The new 12-acre site allows the return of a B52-B bomber plane and other large-scale artifacts. 505-245-2137; nuclearmuseum.org.