New documentary promotes mysteries of Roswell's UFOs

Not everyone who finds themselves drawn to UFO-related subjects believes, unequivocally, that extraterrestrial life exists. For one’s interest to be piqued, all that’s really required is an interest in the unknown.

A belief in at least the possibility that extraterrestrial life exists, an open mind — well, that doesn’t hurt either.

Of course there are many true believers out there. Either because of a personal encounter or experience or an inability to ignore the math, for them no leap of faith is required.

But unless or until a “Day the Earth Stood Still” moment plays out for all the world to see, many people interested in the lore that surrounds the UFO phenomenon are curious, open to the possibility, perhaps on the verge of that leap of faith — but require proof before taking the plunge.

For those unfamiliar with the 1951 science fiction movie “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” in it a flying saucer lands in Washington, D.C., and is promptly surrounded by the military and crowds of onlookers.

In short order, an alien emerges from the ship, followed by a giant robot.

A lot happens in the movie, but the most memorable moment for most is that spaceship showing up in Washington with all the stealth of a Super Bowl halftime act.

If that happened today it might be spun as fake news — but it wouldn’t be easy. For most, it would eliminate a need for any guesswork when it comes to the UFO phenomenon and what’s behind it.

There was no “Day the Earth Stood Still” moment when the recent documentary “Roswell Mysteries Decoded” — parts of which were filmed at the Roswell Daily Record — aired on the CW network.

Perhaps the best chance for such a moment involved bits of metal found by a local man in the area of the alleged 1947 UFO crash site northwest of Roswell. But the lab doing the testing wasn’t able to vet all the samples, and the ones that could be subjected to scientific scrutiny contained mostly aluminum, which caused the ufologist who co-hosted the documentary to express disappointment.

The program is a fun and worthwhile watch, and for those not already familiar with the 1947 event, a decent primer.

But the one thing really proven by the documentary — launched before the network’s new “Roswell, New Mexico” television series premiered — is that interest in the unknown as it relates to the Roswell incident remains.

Roswell’s mysteries might not have been decoded, but they were promoted — and from the standpoint of a city with a stake in UFO tourism, that’s not a bad outcome at all.

— John Dilmore

Editor, Roswell Record