Bespin / Legends Bespin was a gas giant in the Bespin system of the Anoat sector on the Ison Corridor in the Greater Javin region of the Outer Rim Territories . It was also a major source of tibanna gas , which was refined for production and transport in numerous mining operations including Cloud City and Tibannopolis . It was home to several million individuals , including Humans , Ugnaughts , and Lutrillians . Overview . The planet Bespin was a gas giant that was about 118 , 000 kilometers in diameter . Like most gas giants , it had a solid core made of metal ( in this case , rethin , 6 , 000 kilometers in diameter ) followed by layers of metallic gases . Most of the layers of gas were poisonous , and the pressure and temperature were far above what a Human could tolerate . Despite this , from approximately 150 to 180 kilometers down from space there was a 30 kilometer thick habitable layer known as the Bespin Life Zone . This layer had an oxygen atmosphere with temperature and pressure suitable for Human life . It was in this layer that Cloud City was located . As with many gas giants , Bespin had a number of moons . Bespin had a twelve - hour day , and completed a revolution around its star approximately once every fourteen standard years . Bespin ' s fauna included the winged Tibannuck s , velkers , rawwks , the gas - filled beldon , and airborne algae sacks . Bespin was the type class of the " Bespin " - class gas giant . History . Old Republic era . The planet was first discovered by the explorers from the Hyperspace Navigator ' s Guild in years prior to the Mandalorian Wars . The carbonite - rich Empress Teta established a small gas operation on the planet , but it was mostly destroyed during the Mandalorian Wars by a fleet of Mandalorian warships , hoping to break up the tibanna gas supply chain for the Galactic Republic . Bespin was first colonized in 1989 BBY . The planet had its own Jedi Enclave . During the New Sith Wars , the Brotherhood of Darkness captured the planet . Lord Ecclessis Figg commissioned Cloud City to be built by the Incom Corporation around 400 BBY . Rise of the Empire era . In 22 BBY , the planet served as a refuge for children orphaned by the Clone Wars . During the Dark Reaper Crisis , the planet fell to the Confederacy of Independent Systems . Later on the planet was a site of several small battles between the Galactic Republic and the CIS , in which the Republic ultimately managed to regain and keep control of the planet . After the Republic was reorganized into the Galactic Empire , the planet was placed under Imperial control , although it was largely left alone beyond that . This was the planet on which Galen Marek found Rahm Kota when he was searching for potential leaders of the Rebel Alliance . The former Jedi had hidden himself on one of Bespin ' s many construction platforms and Marek fought one of the Emperor ' s Shadow Guard during the meeting . Marek also rescued Senator Garm Bel Iblis while Cloud City was filled with criminals and thugs . Galactic Civil War . During the Galactic Civil War , Lando Calrissian served as Baron Administrator of Cloud City . He helped provide well - paying jobs for the Ugnaughts , and was admired and liked by the citizens of Cloud City . When Han Solo , along with Leia Organa , C - 3PO , and Chewbacca came to Cloud City in 3 ABY to escape from the Empire , they walked into a trap set up by Darth Vader , which Lando was forced into aiding . Han Solo was frozen into Carbonite and Leia Organa and Chewbacca were to remain in the city . As Boba Fett brought Han onto his ship , " Slave I " , Lando with Lobot ' s help , got the two out of Imperial controller along with blasted Threepio and tried to rescue Han from Fett but failed . Meanwhile , Luke Skywalker dueled Vader , lost his right hand , and Vader revealed that he was Luke ' s father . Pinned between the choice of going with his long - lost father or dying by his blade , Luke plunged into an air vent . When he fell , he managed to grasp onto a weather vane beneath the city . In pain from his wound and his new knowledge , Luke pleaded for Obi - Wan Kenobi ' s help , to no avail . He managed to telepathically communicate with Leia , and was rescued by the " Millennium Falcon " . The " Falcon " in turn managed to escape from the " Executor " when R2 - D2 fixed the disabled hyperdrive . However , a garrison of troops was left on the planet , and the garrison fought against the Rebel Alliance and Bespin security forces for control of Cloud City ' s Gravity Control Generator s . The garrison also destroyed the Bespin Government Center and built an Imperial Palace in its place to cement their occupation . Calrissian ' s former assistant , Lobot , temporarily ousted the garrison from the planet by tricking them into thinking Cloud City ' s repulsorlift pods were compromised . Later , just before the Battle of Endor in 4 ABY , the Alliance raided the still Imperial - controlled colony with the help of Rogue Squadron . The successful raid secured shipment of vital tibanna to the Rebel cause . The main battle to free Bespin was fought right after Endor . Calrissian , now a general in the Rebel Alliance , led the Rebel SpecForces against the Empire and successfully ousted the occupying troops . The Jedi X2 was also involved in liberating the city with the help of Calrissian and Lobot . Calrissian himself would eventually return to being Baron Administrator . In 5 ABY , Lando lost the Cloud City to Zorba Desilijic Tiure in a game of sabacc . After Zorba was ousted , Lando turned governance of the city over to King Ozz of the Ugnaughts . Lobot became administrator of the City ( possibly under the authority of Ozz ) . Bespin was later taken over by the Empire in 9 ABY and later , the Empire Reborn . During the Thrawn campaign , Bespin was used by Grand Admiral Thrawn to supply the Bilbringi Shipyards in tibanna gas . In 11 ABY , Luke Skywalker discovered an elderly man named Streen , who possessed latent Force abilities , living a hermit ' s life in the abandoned city of Tibannopolis . Streen ' s life among the clouds gave him unique abilities to manipulate wind , air , and communing with flying creatures . Streen accompanied Luke to the Jedi Praxeum , where he became one of the earliest students . Yuuzhan Vong War . During the Yuuzhan Vong War , the planet remained untargeted by the Yuuzhan Vong , due to the fact that there was no planet surface to Vongform . Unlike many planets during the war , it remained untouched and isolated . Dark Nest Crisis . In 36 ABY , the planet was plagued with tibanna tapper s using siphoning balloon s . Jaina Solo and Zekk were assigned to investigate . It was eventually discovered the stolen tibanna was being used for the Killik nest ship s constructed in the Tusken ' s Eye . Second Galactic Civil War . In 40 ABY , along with Adumar , Commenor , Fondor and the Corporate Sector Authority , Bespin became allied with Corellia in an attempt to challenge the benefits of membership in the Galactic Alliance , during the Second Galactic Civil War . Later in 40 ABY , Bespin joined the Confederation . Darth Krayt ' s empire . During the time of Darth Krayt ' s Galactic Empire , an Ithorian named Ormo Haddon was the Baron Administrator of Cloud City . Haddon abandoned the outskirts of the city and moved the businesses to the central area . Economy . The main economy on Bespin was the mining of tibanna gas . Tibanna gas was a very important resource used by both the Alliance to Restore the Republic and the Galactic Empire for powering weapons . When supercharged , the gas could fire a bolt of energy , resulting in the blaster shot . Spinsealed tibanna gas , which occurred naturally on Bespin , had the ability to quadruple the power of blaster bolts passing through it . Most of the settlements on Bespin were mining colonies , such as Lando Calrissian ' s facility in 3 ABY . While most of the commercial exploitation of Bespin was done by Figg & Associates , there were also a few gas prospectors . These lone pilots would search the skies for " gas strikes " in their ramshackle vessels , where plumes of deep gas would spurt into the high atmosphere due to internal storms deep below them . Some gas prospectors would ride extremely close to storm systems in the hope of gaining many riches from a gas strike , only to vanish without trace in the massive and unpredictable storms . During the Galactic Civil War , the Empire stored supplies of bacta on Bespin . Flora and fauna . Many animals existed in the high atmosphere of Bespin , included the beldon , a huge floating creature that excreted the tibanna gas that made Bespin famous . Velkers , rawwks , and tibannuck s also lived in the atmosphere , as well as many other exotic and brightly colored animals , many of which were never properly categorized , often called floaters . Some thrantas were transported to Bespin , thus allowing them to survive the destruction of their homeworld , Alderaan . Floating in the gas giant ' s skies were many different forms of algae and plankton . One kind of algae called " pinks " were so plentiful they gave the sky of Cloud City its distinctive color . Yet another form of algae called " glowers " gave the night side of Bespin a distinct purplish glow . Behind the scenes . In the early rough draft of " Star Wars " written in 1974 , the planet Alderaan , which was set as a giant gas planet and the capital of the New Galactic Empire at that time , resembled Bespin in " The Empire Strikes Back " . And there was also a city that resembled the Cloud City on that " original Alderaan " . Bespin was mentioned in a stamp for the Intergalactic Passport that acted as a backstage pass for " The Empire Strikes Back " , although most of the stamp was illegible due to apparent wear and tear . In the early story conferences for " The Empire Strikes Back " , Ketbrae ( also known as Kettlebrae ) was a gas giant . It eventually became Bespin . " " indicates that Bespin is the home planet of the Ugnaughts , and shows the planet as having a habitable surface — a phenomenon that is impossible on a gas giant . This error is corrected in the Databank , which states that Ugnaughts inhabited secret floating platforms below Cloud City . The " surface " , which Lando Calrissian plummeted to in the comic , was later established as Ugnaught Surface in " " . Bespin serves as a location for multiple Versus Mode matches in " " . In the 2006 video game " " , Bespin cannot be destroyed by the Death Star during space combat , but can from the Galactic Map , unlike most planets . The 1998 PC game " " , mistakenly placed Bespin in the Churba sector , though it is actually located in the Mid Rim . In another error , the planet map displayed at the original Star Tours attraction in and places the planet within the Bala Trix Nebula . Bespin also appeared in two missions in the LEGO re - creation of the Original trilogy in the 2006 video game " . " The missions were also included in the game ' s 2007 .