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Kessel

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a planet with large spice mining operation, Kessel was the second and primary world in the Kessel System, far out in the Outer Rim. It had no natural atmosphere, so one was generated by huge processors. It was orbited by a single moon. Astrophysicists believed that Kessel, like the rest of the Kessel System, was doomed to be swallowed by the nearby Maw in the next few millennia, as the intense gravity of the multiple black holes drew it in. The miners who harvested the spice from the planet's crust worked in near-absolute darkness, so as not to activate the spice. During the era of the New Order, Kessel was used as an Imperial penal colony, with an Imperial garrison stationed on the moon. The prisoners were used as spice miners. When Emperor Palpatine died at Endor, the Imperials stationed on Kessel were not prepared for autonomy. When the prisoners heard about the death of the Emperor, they revolted against the Imperial guards, overthrowing them and taking control of the planet and the production of spice. Moruth Doole, a prisoner who had risen to the top of the Imperial's list of henchmen, became the de facto ruler of the mines. He continued to use the lowest of the prisoners as spice miners, keeping a handful of the upper-level prisoners as advisors and crew chiefs. Doole had the atmospheric production reduced in an effort to save money; he felt that since the prisoners worked underground, an above-ground atmosphere was a frivolous waste of money. Doole's reign over the mines ended just after he shot Han Solo down over the planet. Solo escaped through the Maw, only to find the Maw Installation. His escape back through the Maw drew Daala's Imperial fleet through it as well, and his escape drew Daala's ire. She lashed out at Doole's Navy in retaliation, destroying 90% of it. When Tol Sivron and the remaining Installation crew fled through the Maw in the prototype Death Star, they used Kessel as a target for the untested superlaser. They succeeded only in destroying the garrison moon. Lando and Mara Jade tried to reopen the mines, but were unsuccessful at making the operation profitable. Kessel orbits the star Kessa once every 322 local days. Each day lasts about 26 standard hours. Note that the day on Kessel is listed as 34 standard hours, and its year at 428 local days, in the Wizards of the Coast website's Planet Hoppers feature. Also note that the computer game Rebellion states that Kessel is located in the Calaron Sector, while The Hutt Gambit says it's in the Kessel Sector. Also note that Classic Star Wars: The Early Adventures depicts Kessel as a beautiful, temperate world of strange forests of huge fungi. The planet is ravaged by Captain Bzorn, who controlled the Ionic Ring, but it is unclear if the devastation resulted in the desolate world seen in the Jedi Academy Trilogy.