 More federal agencies began to come to the area which already had a large federal footprint and a well trained work force.The Atomic Energy Commission, National Center for Atmospheric Research, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and National Institute of Standards and Technology all opened offices in the Denver area.From 1953 to 1989, the Rocky Flats Plant, a Department of Energy nuclear weapon facility formerly located about from Denver, produced fissile plutonium "pits" for nuclear warheads.