Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe Announces Nikola Tesla Expo 2026
Celebrating Nikola Tesla’s 170th Birthday, the Dedication of the Sayan Center, and America’s 250th Anniversary with a Spectacular Drone Light Show and more
Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe invites the public to celebrate innovation at the 2026 Nikola Tesla Expo with an unforgettable evening of science, technology, innovation, and wonder at Nikola Tesla’s historic laboratory site in Shoreham, NY. The event takes place on Saturday, July 11, from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM. Rain date: July 12.
A Celebration Like No Other
The Nikola Tesla Expo has become one of Long Island’s most entertaining summer science celebrations, and 2026 promises to be the most remarkable yet. This year, guests are invited to celebrate Nikola Tesla’s 170th birthday alongside two landmark occasions: America’s 250th Anniversary and the dedication of the Sayan Center, the first public building on the Wardenclyffe campus and a transformative step in Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe’s mission to bring Nikola’s last remaining laboratory back to life.
“This year marks a truly special moment in our history,” said Kara Cannon, Executive Director of Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe. “The opening of the Sayan Center means we can finally welcome visitors into a dedicated space on this extraordinary site to explore exhibits, experience programming, and begin their journey through Nikola Tesla’s last remaining laboratory. It is the next chapter of what Wardenclyffe will become.”
The Sayan Center: Wardenclyffe’s First Public Building
For more than a century, Nikola Tesla’s Wardenclyffe laboratory has stood as a private site visited only through guided tours of the grounds. This summer, that begins to change. The Sayan Center will be dedicated as the first building on the Wardenclyffe campus ever opened to the public, marking a historic turning point for the site and for TSCW’s mission.
“The Sayan Center is made possible by the generous support of Eugene Sayan and TSCW’s broader community of donors, whose commitment is helping turn Nikola’s last remaining laboratory into a place the public can finally experience firsthand,” said Kara Cannon, Executive Director of Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe.
Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe is collaborating with longtime supporter, dedicated volunteer, and acclaimed filmmaker Joe Sikorski, whose 2015 documentary, Tower to the People, was selected for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Core Collection, to bring the Center experience to life. Together, they are developing a dynamic series of exhibits exploring the impact and enduring legacy of Nikola Tesla, connecting his groundbreaking work to the technologies and ideas shaping our world today.
Visitors can expect an experience that is immersive, interactive, and deeply inspiring. The introductory journey will help define the culture’s fascination with Nikola Tesla through a series of engaging topics designed to invite curiosity, spark imagination, and engage audiences of all ages. This newly renovated space on the Wardenclyffe site paves the way for the future museum to be built inside the genius inventor’s last laboratory on the globe and TSCW is excited to welcome visitors to this intriguing preface to the main story of Nikola Tesla.
Where History Meets the Future
This summer, history collides with the present in striking ways. As the sun sets over the historic laboratory, hundreds of electric, zero-emission drones will rise above the grounds for Nikola’s American Dream, a choreographed and narrated light show tracing Tesla’s journey from his immigration to America to the technologies he helped make possible. It’s a fitting tribute: the same skies Nikola once imagined as a conduit for wireless power and global connection now lit up by the very technology his work helped inspire.
The moment is amplified by America’s 250th Anniversary. As a proud participant in the Suffolk County Passport Book program, Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe will stamp visitors’ passports on-site, adding Wardenclyffe to the list of historic Long Island landmarks marking the nation’s milestone year, a fitting stop on a journey through Long Island’s revolutionary past and its scientific future.
An Evening of Discovery for All Ages
Step onto the grounds of Nikola Tesla’s last remaining laboratory and into a world of imagination, creativity, and hands-on exploration. This year’s Expo brings together a remarkable lineup of exhibitors, activities, and experiences for curious minds of all ages.
Highlights include:
• Sparks, Chaos & Liftoff
Maker, inventor, and science showman Frank Longo brings hands-on experiments, theatrical chaos, and a healthy dose of maker energy to the Kid’s Stage, building toward an electrifying finale where human conductivity helps trigger a live rocket launch.
• Sam’s Weather School
Former News12 meteorologist Samantha Augeri takes kids inside the science of storms in this electrifying headline show, with thunderstorms, lightning, a giant storm cloud, and hands-on demos straight out of Nikola Tesla’s playbook — a Van de Graaff generator, plasma globe, Tesla coil, thunder drum, energy stick human circuit, and more.
• BioBus, sponsored by National Grid
BioBus is a mobile science laboratory bringing hands-on STEM education to K-12 students. Community scientists lead lessons in clean energy, sustainability, and environmental science using research-grade microscopes.
• The Owl Experience
Join raptor handler, wild animal rescuer, and rehabilitator Jim MacDougall for a live owl lesson on the Kids Stage, featuring two special guests: Aria, a Eurasian Eagle Owl, and Aurora, a Spectacled Owl from South and Central America. A rare, up-close look at these magnificent birds and the wild world they call home.
• Wardenclyffe Science Pub LIVE!
Part talk show, part trivia competition, all fascinating, weird, and wildly fun science, hosted by Richard Jordan, TSCW’s latest programming will make a live appearance on the Expo’s Main Stage.
• Custer Institute and Observatory
Explore the sky with Long Island’s oldest public observatory and their state-of-the-art Sky Watcher Heliostar 76Ha solar telescope, alongside a Celestron NexStar 8SE and two manual Newtonian Dobsonian telescopes.
• Long Island Aquarium
Get hands-on with a live animal touch tank, bringing marine life up close for Expo-goers of all ages.
• Long Island Glass
Watch master glassblower Joe Pecoraro demonstrate live glass blowing, turning molten glass into art right before your eyes.
• FIRST Long Island Robotics
See a live FIRST LEGO League (FLL) demonstration showcasing the next generation of young roboticists in action.
• PSEG Kids Zone
Young innovators craft & activity zone, 9-Hole Mini Putt, Ninja Blaster Inflatable, face painting, and more.
• Food Trucks & Sweet Treats
Enjoy Rollin Ghost and Ghost Kitchen LI, Wild Bill’s Soda, Kona Ice, Mister Softee, and Emily’s Apple Puffs.
• Lots of Other Exhibitors and Vendors
Cradle of Aviation Museum, Museum of Interesting Things, Suffolk County Radio Club, TSCW Nikola Tesla’s Inventions, WALK-FM and more!
Drone Light Show Grand Finale: Nikola’s American Dream
The night will conclude in an unforgettable spectacle, sponsored by Zebra Technologies and brought to you by Sky Elements, the largest drone light show company in the United States and holders of 17 Guinness World Records™ titles. You may already know them from their jaw-dropping performance on America’s Got Talent and this summer, the skies above Nikola Tesla’s historic Wardenclyffe laboratory will be their next canvas.
Once again, hundreds of electric, zero-emission drones will light up the Long Island sky in a mesmerizing, choreographed display, a stunning, sustainable alternative to traditional fireworks and a fitting tribute to Nikola’s visionary dream of a connected, wireless future.
Sponsors
The Nikola Tesla Expo 2026 is proudly supported by Zebra Technologies, PSEG-LI, Haugland Group, Gershow Recycling, National Grid, SUNY Farmingdale State College, Alliance for Clean Energy New York (ACE NY), New York Offshore Wind Alliance (NYOWA), Meltzer, Lippe, Goldstein & Breitstone, LLP, Flagstar Bank, Tiki Boat Long Island, WALK-FM (97.5 FM) and more.
Event Details:
Date & Time: Saturday, July 11, 2026, 5:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Location: Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe, 5 Randall Road, Shoreham, NY
Rain Date: Sunday, July 12, 2026
Tickets: Available at expo.teslasciencecenter.org/2026