Hulk comics: Encyclopedia II - Hulk comics - Powers and abilities

Hulk comics - Powers and abilities

The Hulk possesses a variety of superhuman abilities as a result of exposure to vast amounts of gamma radiation.

The Hulk's most well known superhuman power is his potentially limitless physical strength. In a functionally "calm" state, the Hulk is capable of lifting roughly 100 tons. However, the Hulk's strength increases exponentially as adrenaline courses through his body during times of heightened emotional strain, particularly the emotion of anger in potentially harmful and/or life threatening situations. While in this enraged state, the Hulk is capable of lifting far in excess of 100 tons. During the Secret Wars mini-series, for example, he was seen effectively holding up an entire mountain which was dropped on him and a large number of other superhuman heroes by the Molecule Man until the other heroes buried inside could find a way to blast their way out. The mountain was written weighing 150 billion tons. Due to the tremendous power of the Hulk's highly developed leg muscles, he is capable of leaping about 3 miles in a single bound while he's "calm". However, while enraged, the Hulk has been observed jumping into Earth's upper atmosphere.

Aside from his great strength, the Hulk's body is practically invulnerable to physical injury. The tissues of the Hulk's body can withstand high caliber bullets, artillery cannon shells, falls from great heights, exposure to temperatures in excess of 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit, exposure to a vacuum environment for extended periods of time, etc. without sustaining injury. However, it is possible to cause the Hulk physical injury. Once injured, the damaged tissue will completely mend itself with superhuman levels of speed and efficiency. The exact limits of the Hulk's healing powers aren't known and it is theorized that his ability to heal himself increases while he is in an enraged state, just like his strength. The Hulk's highly advanced musculature generates considerably less lactic acids than the muscles of ordinary human beings. This grants the Hulk superhuman stamina in all physical activities. In theory, the Hulk can exert himself at peak capacity for several days before fatigue would impair his performance.

In addition to his physical power and healing ability, the Hulk has demonstrated a couple of supernatural abilities. First, the Hulk has the ability to "home in" on the desert base where he was created. This appears to have been caused by a connection with the spirit of the Maestro, his evil future self, which ties into his second mystical ability: The Hulk is able to see and hear ghosts, such as the astral form of Dr. Strange. This ability may be caused by Banner's fear that his father will return to seek revenge for his death.

The Hulk's body also has a gland that makes an "oxygenated perfluorocarbon emulsion", which creates pressure in the Hulk's lungs and effectively lets him breathe underwater and move quickly between varying depths without concerns about decompression or nitrogen narcosis. It is not known if the Hulk has always had this ability or if it has developed over time.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Powers and abilities", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki