TV's top-rated drama -- CBS' set-in-Vegas "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" -- returns home this week for a "Killer" episode, shooting today and Tuesday at Glitter Gulch.

"CSI" regulars William Petersen, Paul Guilfoyle and Jorja Fox will make the trek, according to producer Louis Milito.

"It's about time we came back to Las Vegas," he says. ("CSI" hasn't filmed here since August.)

In addition to scenes at the Golden Nugget, "there's a nice car crash we wanted to do," Milito notes.

Those crash sequences are scheduled to shoot today on Carson Avenue, between First and Main streets.

Claude's Bar at the Golden Nugget and Fremont Street Experience exteriors round out today's locations; Tuesday's shoot centers on Main Street's Greyhound bus station.

It's the Golden Nugget's second time in the "CSI" spotlight.

The series previously filmed there in August 2004, recalls Nugget public relations manager Sylke Finnegan.

"Killer" will air Feb. 2, leading off the show's sweeps-month programming, Milito says.

"And we will definitely try to get back for the final sweeps episode," Milito says, which will shoot in late May or early April for May broadcast ...

Food for thought: Meanwhile, back at NBC's "Las Vegas," plans also are in the works for a location trek to the show's namesake setting, reports executive producer Gary Scott Thompson.

"We need to pick up a few pieces" for the show's next two episodes, he says, one of which starts shooting today at the series' Southern California home, Culver Studios.

"Las Vegas" captured new aerial vistas in August, Thompson points out, but "we're trying to get over there again for some Strip action," possibly involving series regular Josh Duhamel.

Tonight's episode, meanwhile, introduces a new Vegas element: Wolfgang Puck at the Montecito, a fictional eatery that spotlights real-life celebrity chef Puck, who makes a cameo appearance.

"It's a great set," Thompson notes. "Even Wolfgang said, 'Oh my God, this is like my restaurant.' "

And with a functional kitchen as part of the set, "the second (Puck) came in," Thompson notes, "he started cooking ..."

Stormy weather: The Weather Channel series "Full Force Nature," produced by California-based Indigo Films, visits Tuesday to revisit the floods that swept northwest Las Vegas in August 2003.

In addition to an interview with cameraman Oscar Palomo of KVVU-TV, Channel 5, segment producer Elena Cruz also hopes to talk with flood victims.

If you're interested, e-mail Cruz at ecruz@ indigofilms.com ...

Carol Cling's Shooting Stars column appears Mondays. Contact her at 383-0272 or e-mail her at ccling@reviewjournal.com.