http://www.wolfgnards.com/index.php/2009/12/13/how-long-could-luke-survive-in-a-tauntau I know I've contemplated this scenario numerous times. I'm glad I now have an idea of how long it would take to set up a shelter. Han was probably done within 30 minutes. Us average Joes might struggle to make it within 56 minutes.
All this assumes a specific knowledge of the tauntaun's biology. For all they know, a healthy TT's body temp could start at 150 degrees and die of hypo at 120 degrees.
Also, I would think that Luke could use the lightsaber to heat rocks and boulders to a near molten state to provide lasting warmth.
Tauntauns were genetically similar to Kybucks and featured a mix of traditionally reptilian features, such as a lack of mammary glands and scaly skin. They were also warm-blooded, covered in fur (which ranged from gray to white), and gave birth to live young; mammalian characteristics. Known subspecies included the glacier tauntaun, scaly tauntaun, climbing tauntaun, and the giant tauntaun (also referred to as the common tauntaun). Some glacier tauntauns and giant tauntauns in a Hoth ice cave. Tauntauns possessed numerous evolutionary adaptations to the bitter, cold environments of Hoth. Those adaptations included wide feet for running across icy surfaces, swiveling ears, thick blubber, chambered lungs and dual nostrils, and a digestive system that excreted wastes as oils through skin pores, producing a distinctive odor. Han Solo commented on the smell after he sliced open his recently deceased tauntaun with Luke Skywalker's lightsaber to keep the latter warm. Their four nostrils served to warm inhaled air. Their larger pair were used to bring oxygen into the blood stream during physical exertion. When laying down to sleep, the larger pair sealed to keep snow out, and the second pair took over. A well-muscled tail extended a meter from their bodies to help maintain balance. They had clawed feet and hands to gain purchase on the ice. Their feet were also tridactyl, with splayed toes to act as natural snowshoes. The most important feature of tauntaun physiology was their unique blood mixture that was resistant to the tundra winds and kept their organs from freezing.[2] Despite these adaptations, tauntauns sought shelter at night to avoid the extreme nighttime temperatures of Hoth. When shelter was unavailable, they used their evolved ability to hibernate during low nighttime temperatures. Some tauntaun breeds actually froze to death if awakened after sundown. When not eating the fungus that grew beneath the frost layer or lichens found in hoarfrost,[source?] the omnivorous tauntauns were also known to eat ice scrabblers and Hoth hogs.[2] Tauntauns were matriarchal animals and lived in herds of twenty to thirty individuals. Horn-butting matches were common among both males and females who hoped to establish dominance. Tauntauns were able to give birth to two young at a time, which would occur twice within one Hoth year. Though they lacked mammary glands, tauntauns could regurgitate a form of "milk" produced in their crops. They tended to be ill-tempered, a natural result of evolving in such an inhospitable environment. A peculiar form of "attack" among the females, and some of the males, during mating season was their spitting ability. Tauntauns would spit at each other's eyes, with surprising accuracy. While their smelly saliva was by no means deadly, it was quite inconvenient to have any liquid freeze near their eyes in Hoth's blizzards.
For the record, I did not write that! And I've seen a woman naked. I used to shower with my sister. Or did I?
