'Battlestar,' the final auction

Geeks save the date: NBC Universal has finalized plans to auction props, costumes and set pieces from Sci Fi Channel’s concluding cult-favorite series "Battlestar Galactica."

The company has booked a weekend at the Pasadena Convention Center for the auction, coinciding with the return of the show on Jan. 16.

The auction is one of the most elaborate events ever planned around the conclusion of a TV series, with fans flying in to stay in area hotels to bid on "BSG" items.

The schedule includes an auction preview day, panel discussions with various designers on theseries, two auction days, an online auction of 200 items for those who cannot attend in person and thenweekly auctions of additional items thereafter to coincide with thefinal batch of "Battlestar" episodes airing on Sci Fi Channel. 

NBC Universal has embraced fan auctions in the past year as a way tooffset rising production costs. A portion of the auction’s proceedswill benefit United Way.

Items up for bid include full-size space ships, Adama’s desk,  and sixto 12 costumes from each major character, including Caprica Six’s reddress.