Bistate gel

Bistate gel, also known as thermal gel, was a protective gel like substance. Bistate gel was used in the shells of cocoon pods to secure a Mountain Terrain Armored Transport during re-entry. Deployed from dispensors inside the cocoon pod, the bistate gel hardened and absorbed the kinetic energy upon the impact of landing. When deployed, the MT-AT would emerge from the cocoon pod covered in the bistate gel. In this way, the "birth" of the vehicle into combat was organic-looking.

Text and facts from the “Bistate gel” article on Wookieepedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Modified for this site.