The Science Fiction Museum in Seattle, Washington, and the city's famous Space Needle will host a 40th anniversary celebration of Star Trek held by convention organizer PlanetXpo on the weekend of the actual anniversary.

Located at the base of the Space Needle, the Science Fiction Museum & Hall of Fame will be the primary venue of the convention taking place September 8-10, 2006. The 8th is the anniversary of the first airing of Star Trek ("The Man Trap"), and that date will be celebrated with a Friday night gala in the Observation Deck of the Needle.

Celebs currently slated to appear at the PlanetXpo event include Original Series stars Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, Walter Koenig, Grace Lee Whitney and Majel Barrett Roddenberry. Jonathan Frakes, Marina Sirtis and Tim Russ are also confirmed, as is Alan Ruck (the Enterprise-B's "Captain Harriman"). UPDATE: John Billingsley, a former resident of Seattle, has been added to the lineup.

Other special guests include Tracy Tormé, writer during the first two seasons of Star Trek: Next Generation; Lawrence Krauss, author of "The Physics of Star Trek"; novelists Greg Bear and David Brin; astronauts Buzz Aldrin (Apollo 11) and Alan Bean (Apollo 12); and Eugene W. Roddenberry, Jr.

Seating is strictly limited to 400 due to the size of the venue, so PlanetXpo warns that the event could sell out quickly. Visit www.planetxpo.com for complete information.

PlanetXpo is the same organizer who staged the James Doohan Farewell Star Trek Convention & Tribute in August of 2004, less than a year before the actor's death (related story).

The Seattle con will be one of several opportunities to celebrate Star Trek's 40th anniversary on the weekend of September 8. Creation Entertainment has two conventions scheduled simultaneously for the occasion, in Chicago and Sacramento. William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy will attend both, along with John de Lancie and others. Visit www.creationent.com for more details.