The Cradle of Aviation Museum welcomed visitors June 28 for its inaugural “UFOlogy: Close Encounters at the Cradle,” a daylong event exploring the science, mystery and popular fascination surrounding unidentified aerial phenomena.
Hundreds of visitors packed the museum throughout the afternoon, with many families arriving in soccer jerseys before heading out later in the evening to watch the FIFA World Cup.
Guests attended presentations by UFO investigators and local researchers while participating in more than a dozen hands-on STEM activities, including building Cartesian Divers to demonstrate buoyancy and pressure, designing flying saucers led by Joseph D’Andrea of Merrick, creating green slime in “Area 516,” led by employee Peter Zappa in the Space Gallery, experimenting with spectroscopy to study cosmic light and testing their skills with an alien-themed version of the classic game “Operation,” led by Terrence Ho educator from Syosset.
“It’s like an alien autopsy,” said Jen Baxmeyer, the Cradle of Aviation Museum’s executive director.
Thunderstorms that moved through the area during the afternoon forced organizers to cancel all outdoor programming, including the planned drone show, UFO dance party, solar telescope viewing, drone demonstrations and other outdoor exhibits. As the evening approached, the daytime crowds also began to thin as many families left to watch the World Cup.
Five-year-old Jonathan Krechmer, of Garden City, was among the younger visitors exploring the museum’s hands-on activities. He stopped to make slime at one interactive station before designing his own flying saucer.
While Jonathan enjoyed the alien-themed activities, he remained unconvinced that extraterrestrials exist — though he said he was open to the possibility.
“I’m having a lot of fun and look at my slime, it’s so green!” he said. “It looks like the aliens here, but it’s silly.”
The slime station allowed visitors to create their own colorful creations using just three ingredients: Elmer’s glue, food coloring, baking powder and contact lens solution. Participants took their slime home in small plastic bags.
The event featured Long Island-based experts, including the Tedesco Brothers, who showcased the technology they use to investigate unusual aerial sightings, and investigator Ben Hansen, who discussed how science is used to analyze reported UFO encounters.
“We’re not completely debunking things that are out there. There’s plenty that’s unknown, but we want to bring good, solid science to the public,” Baxmeyer said. “And get good information back so that you’re making a very solid, informed decision about what might be occurring.”
In addition to the lectures, visitors stepped inside a portable planetarium, learned about the search for life beyond Earth during presentations by Astronomy on Tap NYC, built parachutes inspired by the Roswell weather balloon and explored exhibits explaining how scientists use light and other technologies to study distant planets and stars.
Baxmeyer said the event was designed to combine entertainment with science education while encouraging visitors to think critically about unexplained phenomena.
“We wanted this to be a fun event that also teaches people about science and exploration,” she said. “If the interest continues, we’d love to make UFOlogy an annual tradition.”
