Superman's Power...

[Nick K.]

I am not sure if I am correct, but does Superman's power not come from the Sun. Kryptonians didn't have power on Krypton but if they came to a planet such as Earth, or i guess a planet close to us in our system, then they would get power. My question is, when Superman goes to places like Apokolips or Ajuris (sp?) 5, how does he still have his power without sunlight?

Maybe Im wrong about the sunlight thing, but I do recall at least 3 episodes touching base on it.

The episode with Luminus where he turns the sun red.

Jax-ur & Mala gaining power when tehy first were brought out of the Phantom Zone.

and

Supergirl also gaining power after coming to Earth?

So, once again, how does Superman have power away from the sun?

[Crimson]

So, once again, how does Superman have power away from the sun?I believe his body acts as a solar battery, storing up energy. After all, he retains his powers even at night. I'm sure he could survive at optimal power for quite a while (days? weeks?) without direct exposure to the sun. I believe exposure to the light of a red sun neutralizes his powers, however.

[Eddie G.]

What Crimson said, and too add he went for a couple of days to a week without the rays of the yellow sun. Besides there are probably a couple of planets that he's visited were in a solar system with a yellow sun.

[Dusty]

Here is what i heard from somewhere (i cannot remember) but once he came into our solar system and was effected by our yellow sun he gained his powers the only way to take em away would be Big K or red sun but the one moment he gets effected from the suns rays he is endowed with his powers forever, (but i am not sure if that is all true so i will check into it)





Dusty.

[dtemplar]

Here is what i heard from somewhere (i cannot remember) but once he came into our solar system and was effected by our yellow sun he gained his powers the only way to take em away would be Big K or red sun but the one moment he gets effected from the suns rays he is endowed with his powers forever, (but i am not sure if that is all true so i will check into it)





Dusty.
You forgot about Gold Kryptonite, that can take away his powers. Also in "A Better World", when the Justice League was captured, Superman's cell was red because of a red solar filter. In "Hereafter" he was in an apocolyptic Earth where the sun was red.

[Roger Smith]

so his like a pair of batteries
give them charge and he is a fighting machine
and without batteries he is a cheap human like me!

[warmachine04]

Superman is definately solar-powered. As long as there is a yellow son nearby, the Man of Steel has the muscles to back it up.:)

[Anthonynotes]

I am not sure if I am correct, but does Superman's power not come from the Sun. Kryptonians didn't have power on Krypton but if they came to a planet such as Earth, or i guess a planet close to us in our system, then they would get power. My question is, when Superman goes to places like Apokolips or Ajuris (sp?) 5, how does he still have his power without sunlight?

Maybe Im wrong about the sunlight thing, but I do recall at least 3 episodes touching base on it.

The episode with Luminus where he turns the sun red.

Jax-ur & Mala gaining power when tehy first were brought out of the Phantom Zone.

and

Supergirl also gaining power after coming to Earth?

So, once again, how does Superman have power away from the sun?
What the others said---Kryptonians didnt' have powers because their planet orbited a red sun; only under a yellow sun (like Earth's, or wherever else in the cosmos) do they get super-powers.

Since the Earth is exposed to the sun's rays even at night, Supes wouldn't have any problems there; I guess Byrne's "solar battery" citation and/or Apokolips having an Earth-like environment (since Earth denizens can breathe, etc. there) are the other answers...

-B.

[Chad Bonin]

I wanna say it was in the comics; late at night him and Bats were staking out a city, and Superman sneezed from the cold.

So he might become a little drained from the dark in the night, but he's still superpowered.

[The Detective]

As others have touched on, Kryptonians do not have power on their planet because of the red sun, the same goes for Argonians. But under the rays of a yellow sun, the Kryptonian body (and Argonian, I believe they are supposed to have evovled from the same species) gains the powers of Superman. I would assume that Apokolops has a yellow. Of course I believe Superman does keep his powers for a while even when not exposed to a yellow sun, like a battery.

[Steven C]

And w/ flight, i read somewhere that Earths gravity is a lot lighter that Krypton's.

[Cigam Retah]

I wanna say it was in the comics; late at night him and Bats were staking out a city, and Superman sneezed from the cold.

So he might become a little drained from the dark in the night, but he's still superpowered.
I belive the situation in question was part of the 'Final Night' saga where the (Sun?) Star-Eater was...well...eating our Sun in a very Galactus-like feast. This is where Hal Jordon as Parallax sacrificed himself by re-starting the sun by using all of his tremendous power.

During the period of darkness, Superman slowly grew weaker and weaker as the weeks went on. You can see part of this in the prolouge to Kevin Smith's 'Quiver' run on Green Arrow, as Superman was already feeling the effects of the cold weather.

[shogunthethird]

they also touched on it in Alex Ross' Kingdom Come where Lex Luthor explained that Kryptonite can't hurt Superman anymore due to "all the solar energy his cells have been guzzling over the years" so in fact he does store solar energy, as for the strenght I'd have to say regardless of kryptonian physiology he's still pretty strong, but then Kansas farm life does tend to be something of a rigorous muscle-builder coupled with the fact even with his powers he's had to lift proportionately heavy things

[Roger Smith]

What did we learn today?
Superman is power by
AA batteries
and Solar Batteries
great =)

[Nick K.]

Thanks, so his body works like a conductor of energy with solar power. And if hes away from a system with a yellow sun by some tragic turn of fate, its bye bye Superman!

[Chad Bonin]

One of the comics from the recent years had him face off against Dracula. Dracula took a bite out of Superman... and blew apart.

The line was along the lines of "My body is powered by the sun, it stores energy. When he bit into me, it was like biting into a million suns"

[Eddie G.]

FUN FACT:
In Action Comics #1 "Kryptonians" actually did have powers, mainly super-strength which also resulted in them being able to jump great distances. Also, if you read into it, Clark's powers rooted from their years of evolution over us. Therefore, all us humans would eventually be as powerful as superman. But of course this has no bearing on modern and animated Superman.

[FALLEN ELDOR]

As others have touched on, Kryptonians do not have power on their planet because of the red sun, the same goes for Argonians. But under the rays of a yellow sun, the Kryptonian body (and Argonian, I believe they are supposed to have evovled from the same species) gains the powers of Superman. I would assume that Apokolops has a yellow. Of course I believe Superman does keep his powers for a while even when not exposed to a yellow sun, like a battery.
Wasn't Argo populated by Kryptonians?


Thanks, so his body works like a conductor of energy with solar power. And if hes away from a system with a yellow sun by some tragic turn of fate, its bye bye Superman!
No, it isn't "bye bye Superman" Superman is like a cell phone. When superman is under a yellow sun he is using power as he draws it and can do so infinitely, just like when talking whole the phone is plugged into the wall. But when he leaves the sun he is using up that stored energy. just like your cell phone battery, superman's power will eventually die out. The longer he is "plugged in" the longer he can last.
The effects of a red sun completely drains the battery or prevent him from using his stored energy.





FUN FACT:
In Action Comics #1 "Kryptonians" actually did have powers, mainly super-strength which also resulted in them being able to jump great distances. Also, if you read into it, Clark's powers rooted from their years of evolution over us. Therefore, all us humans would eventually be as powerful as superman. But of course this has no bearing on modern and animated Superman.\
I did not know that! thanks

[Anthonynotes]

FUN FACT:
In Action Comics #1 "Kryptonians" actually did have powers, mainly super-strength which also resulted in them being able to jump great distances. Also, if you read into it, Clark's powers rooted from their years of evolution over us. Therefore, all us humans would eventually be as powerful as superman. But of course this has no bearing on modern and animated Superman.
Sometime in the late-40's, they changed the explanation to the "Kryptonians powerless, but powered on Earth" explanation, citing the gravity difference between Krypton and Earth at first, then with Supergirl coming along in the late 50's to a combination of Earth's yellow sun and lighter gravity. The superpowered Kryptonians were explained away eventually (pre-Crisis) as being from the Earth-2 universe's version of Krypton (home of the Golden Age Superman)...

-B.