Follow

    Captain Atom

    Character » Captain Atom appears in 804 issues.

    Nathaniel Adam was coerced into an experiment which bonded alien metal to his skin and sent him 18 years into the future, giving birth to Captain Atom, a superhero fueled by the Quantum Field.

    What Are The Limits Of Captain Atom's Powers?

    Avatar image for darkknight96000
    darkknight96000

    1161

    Forum Posts

    0

    Wiki Points

    0

    Followers

    Reviews: 0

    User Lists: 0

    #1  Edited By darkknight96000

    Is there a limit to how much energy Captain Atom can absorb?

    Avatar image for thestarguy
    thestarguy

    411

    Forum Posts

    40

    Wiki Points

    0

    Followers

    Reviews: 0

    User Lists: 1

    #2  Edited By thestarguy
    @DarkKnight96000:  Since Captain Atom technically returns all energy that he directly absorbs back into the Quantum Field, (and does not usually keep the stored energy in his body), his energy absorption capacity is actually limitless, in theory.  That is why he is DC's #1 energy absorber.  BUT, even though he doesn't have an upper limit as to the AMOUNT, he DOES have a limit as to how FAST  he can absorb it.   If he absorbs it too quickly, then he may accidentally "quantum-jump" through either time or space, depending on the type of energy absorbed.  This happened a lot early on in his career, but as his control has improved, the accidental "Quantum jumps" have been far less frequent.  In fact, I think that recently he has begun to hold the absorbed energy in his body instead of directly returning it to the Quantum Field in order to prevent these random Quantum Jumps.  
     
    To think of his method of energy absorption another way, think of a swimming pool with an open drain...no matter how big the pool is, it will all drain out eventually.  But if the size of the drain is small, then the drain rate will be slower than if the drain is larger.  The drain pipe size determines if all of the water will either drain out or overflow during a huge rain storm.
    Avatar image for static_shock
    Static Shock

    53211

    Forum Posts

    12480

    Wiki Points

    0

    Followers

    Reviews: 1

    User Lists: 0

    #3  Edited By Static Shock
    @thestarguy said:
    "In fact, I think that recently he has begun to hold the absorbed energy in his body instead of directly returning it to the Quantum Field in order to prevent these random Quantum Jumps.
    You must be referring to the showing in Generation Lost #1, where he was able to absorb the energy from the bomb that Max Lord rigged for him, but wasn't unable to transfer it to the Quantum Field. I was under the impression that he couldn't retain and transfer the energy because Max rigged the bomb for him with an unknown form of energy/radiation that somewhat affected his energy absorption abilities.
    Avatar image for thestarguy
    thestarguy

    411

    Forum Posts

    40

    Wiki Points

    0

    Followers

    Reviews: 0

    User Lists: 1

    #4  Edited By thestarguy
    @Static Shock:  Hi!  I don't really think that he couldn't transfer it back to the Quantum Field, but that because he didn't recognize the type of energy that he was unwilling to try to transfer it.     Given the way his powers work, I don't think that he can be really harmed by any energy attack.  But he was concerned about collateral damage & what might happen to everyone else around him.   And since he needed to get rid of it quickly, it was probably easier for him to just expel it.
     
    I guess Max  Lord does have access to a lot of tech, so it might have been possible for it to temporarily affect his powers.  But his quantum powers operate at a fundamental level, so they would be very difficult to alter, IMHO.
    Avatar image for static_shock
    Static Shock

    53211

    Forum Posts

    12480

    Wiki Points

    0

    Followers

    Reviews: 1

    User Lists: 0

    #5  Edited By Static Shock
    @thestarguy: Max knows him too well, so I wouldn't doubt it.
    Avatar image for thestarguy
    thestarguy

    411

    Forum Posts

    40

    Wiki Points

    0

    Followers

    Reviews: 0

    User Lists: 1

    #6  Edited By thestarguy
    @Static Shock: Co-signed on that.
    Avatar image for ghostrider_fan1
    ghostrider fan1

    882

    Forum Posts

    5351

    Wiki Points

    0

    Followers

    Reviews: 0

    User Lists: 3

    #7  Edited By ghostrider fan1
    @thestarguy:
    hey is it true he could be stopped by lead foil since it can contain radiation or is that a misconseptiion? i would like to know
    Avatar image for static_shock
    Static Shock

    53211

    Forum Posts

    12480

    Wiki Points

    0

    Followers

    Reviews: 1

    User Lists: 0

    #8  Edited By Static Shock
    @ghostrider fan1: Misconception. LOL.
    Avatar image for ghostrider_fan1
    ghostrider fan1

    882

    Forum Posts

    5351

    Wiki Points

    0

    Followers

    Reviews: 0

    User Lists: 3

    #9  Edited By ghostrider fan1
    @Static Shock:
    good because that'd be a gayer weakness than new GLs weakness to yellow lol
    Avatar image for thestarguy
    thestarguy

    411

    Forum Posts

    40

    Wiki Points

    0

    Followers

    Reviews: 0

    User Lists: 1

    #10  Edited By thestarguy
    @ghostrider fan1: Absolute misconception!  Unfortunately, certain writers tend to not do their homework on either Captain Atom's powers or history before using him.
     

    This edit will also create new pages on Comic Vine for:

    Beware, you are proposing to add brand new pages to the wiki along with your edits. Make sure this is what you intended. This will likely increase the time it takes for your changes to go live.

    Comment and Save

    Until you earn 1000 points all your submissions need to be vetted by other Comic Vine users. This process takes no more than a few hours and we'll send you an email once approved.