Luke Skywalker's Original Lightsaber at Oakland Airport, Ready for Destruction

Well, it won't be destroyed so much as it will be sent into space. And then vaporized, or zapped, or something.

Anyway, someone sporting a Chewbacca outfit handed over Luke Skywalker's original lightsaber prop to NASA representatives at the Oakland Airport today. Apparently it's all a part of Star Wars' 30th anniversary celebration -- this kind of fanfare will happen every five years, folks, so get used to it now -- and "NASA has agreed to carry the...weapon into orbit and jettison it in space." Aw.

The valuable item will takeoff with the space shuttle Discovery, when it's scheduled to launch on Oct. 23.

To see video of the handoff, go here.