Captain Atom

In Charlton's original Silver Age stories the character (Allen Adam) was atomized when a rocket exploded during an experiment and later reformed as an atomic-powered being. After DC Comics acquired the character, the post‑Crisis incarnation was reimagined as Nathaniel Christopher Adam, a United States Air Force officer and Vietnam War veteran subjected to a military experiment in 1968. The character has been rebooted and reinterpreted in later relaunches (including a 2011 relaunch with a new origin).

Charlton-era Captain Atom wore a red-and-yellow costume described as designed to shield people from his radiation; when he 'powered up' his hair became silvery-white. Later DC revamps and the 2011 relaunch altered his costume and visual design over time; specific later visual variants are treated differently across continuities in the supplied sources.

Across incarnations he possesses energy-manipulating and atomic/energy-based powers: early stories describe him as having been atomized and able to reform his body, implying resilience and an energy physiology. Sources summarize his core powers as various forms of energy manipulation related to 'atomic power'; his narratives also emphasize military training, service affiliation, and occasional instability in his energy state (stories note he can be in danger of losing physical coherence or exploding). He has functioned as government asset, team member (e.g., Justice League), and — in some arcs — as a powerful antagonist (Monarch).