In 1940, Gardner Fox and Henry Lampert created a comic book superhero known by the name The Flash. Throughout the years, several different characters have donned the costume of the Crimson Speedster, with Barry Allen being the most famous of them. Each iteration of the character brought something unique to his history and each of them had some specific powers that made it special when compared to the other Flashes. In this article, we are going to be dealing with the Flash’s powers and abilities in the sense that we are going to tell you just how strong is the Flash.
Although each iteration of the Flash was undeniably strong, the Flash was never really portrayed as the most powerful superhero. The Flashes all had amazing abilities, especially when the time was concerned, but they were never portrayed as being more powerful than, for example, Superman, who has a very similar plethora of abilities but is also much stronger than any iteration of the Flash.
How strong is the Flash? (Detailly Explained)
The Flash has always been a hero focused primarily on his Speedster abilities and everything that could be derived from them. His powers are absolutely amazing in that aspect, as he was even able to create an alternative timeline during the famous Flashpoint event. By their mastery of the Speed force, all Flashes have a prodigious speed of reaction and movement, with the latter being able to reach and even exceed in disproportionate ratios the speed of the light at certain moments. Thanks to it, they can achieve feats such as dodging bullets, creating mini-tornadoes by turning their arms or moving in circles extremely fast, running vertically or on water without suffering the effects of gravity, giving bursts of gunfire like a human machine gun.
They are also surrounded by an invisible aura of the Speed Force, the source of their powers, which protects them from friction and pressure from extreme speeds, for example when the sound barrier is crossed, and can vibrate through solids and thus cross them.
The four characters each have specific powers. Jay Garrick and Bart Allen can memorize everything they read in super-speed, which allows them to accumulate an impressive amount of knowledge. Bart Allen was also able, after being hit by a super-speed beam, send energy doubles of himself into the stream of time, but after one of them died, it is not known if he has. still have that ability. Barry Allen could travel in time thanks to a cosmic bearing of his invention and access other dimensions by making his molecules vibrate at a particular frequency (its speed would be 9,400,000 times faster than that of light).
Wally West, after going to the other side of the Speed Force without being absorbed, has acquired new powers: he can speed up wound healing and chemical reactions, communicate his speed to other people or objects by touching them or, on the contrary, stealing theirs. In this way Wally was able to stop the bullets in place, after which they fell to the ground, inert. He is also able to create swift sheer strength items, like his costume.
The extent of Flash’s speed has varied significantly. In fact, it seems that over the generations, they have become faster and faster and, more generally, more and more powerful. Thus, during the first meeting between Jay Garrick and Barry Allen, it was clearly shown that the second was running faster than the first. Barry Allen is the only Flash to have reached twice the speed of light (during one of his races against Superman, for example), an unprecedented record. We learn on his return that he is in fact at the origin of the Speed Force.
As far as their physical powers are concerned, they have never been particularly imposing, although they have demonstrated some strength from time to time. The Flashes have always been regular humans with a connection to the Speed Force. They are fast, but the Speed Force doesn’t really improve their strength that much. For example, in a battle against Superman or Wonder Woman, both superheroes with superhuman strength, the Flashes are practically useless. Still, they are able to use the Speed Force to create momentum so powerful that they can deal impressive damage, although it takes them a while to get there.
Is Flash the most powerful superhero?
The Flash has never been portrayed as the most powerful superhero in any iteration; that spot was usually reserved for Superman. Neither in terms of their powers and specific abilities, nor in terms of pure physical power, The Flash has never been the most powerful superhero in the DC Universe. He was usually portrayed as being the fastest character in the DC Universe, but never the most powerful, which makes the answer to this question rather easy.
How strong is the Flash’s punch?
We have established that the Flash isn’t physically imposing, but that he is able to deliver a strong punch. He uses the Speed Force to gain momentum and then lands a powerful punch with a lit of force. And although the comics confirmed that even his strongest punch doesn’t do much damage to Superman or Wonder Woman, it is still quite powerful.
We know, we know, we’re not usually using the TV shows as a reliable source (we tend to focus on the comic books), but we have a neat external source that provides us with some interesting numbers that explain just how powerful the Flash’s punch could actually be. University professor of physics, James Kakalios, has spoken to our colleagues from the Insider about the physics behind the Flash’s punch and this is what he had to say:
He breaks the sound barrier (767 mph at sea level), reaches 837 mph, and finally landing a strong blow to Girder’s metallic face:
See AlsoThe Flash Shows the Horror of Being a Superhero - IGNIs The Flash really the the greatest superhero movie ever? | Digital TrendsThe Flash (Barry Allen) - Post-Crisis - Super Powers - Superhero DatabaseBreaking down every single cameo in The FlashBut at that insane speed, could a human actually do any damage to a solid-metal noggin? The speed of sound is fast, but hands are merely flesh and bone.
Remarkably, Kakalios says “yes,” you could punch the lights out of a metal man with a supersonic blow. Let’s assume Allen’s hand weighs the human average of half a kilogram (roughly a pound), based on NASA calculations.
“Say he hits Girder in 1/10th of a second,” Kakalios explained. “That’s about 2,000 newtons, about 450 lbs of force — so he’s hitting him with a force equivalent to 450 lbs. and does it in 1/10th of a second.”
This is no idle slap.
“That 450 lbs of force is going to leave a mark,” he added. What’s more, that force is coming from a disembodied Barry Allen hand flying through the air. So if he’s putting all the force of his body weight — let’s say 180 lbs. (82 kg) — behind it, that force is going to be way bigger: 73,737 lbs of force. That’s more weight than two Greyhound buses, delivered by the surface area of a fist.”
– “A scientist explains the physics behind The Flash’s powerful supersonic punch”, Insider, Jun 7, 2016, 5:43 PM
As you can see, physics confirms that Barry Allen can, indeed, pack a punch, but while that punch might hurt some supervillains and regular humans, it is still far below the power level needed to do damage to the likes of Superman or Wonder Woman.
How strong is the Flash’s Infinite Mass Punch?
Alongside his “regular” punch, the Flash is also able to produce the so-called “Infinite Mass Punch”, which is an enormously strong punch that requires a lot of preparations to execute. The “thing” with this punch is that its name is misleading, since Flash’s fist doesn’t really become an infinite mass object, but it does achieve the force of planetary proportions. Our colleague from the portal The Universe and Stuff Like That has calculated the exact force of this Punch and here is what he said:
Calculations: Force In Newtons
Newtons Formula: (final speed [in meters per second] minus initial speed [in meters per second] = acceleration, acceleration x mass [in kilograms]= newtons of force)
Initial Speed: 0 m/s
Final Speed = Speed of Light = 299,792,458 m/s
Time = 1 day = 86,400 seconds
Acceleration = 299,792,458 divided by 86,400 ~ 3470 m/s^2 (^ = exponent)
According to the Chandrasekhar Limit The Maximum Mass Of A White Dwarf Star Is 1.4 Solar Masses or 2.8 x 10^30 kg (or 2,800,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 kg) or Approximately The Mass Of The Flash’s Hand
Force = 2.8 x 10^30 x 3470 = 9.716 x 10^33 (or 9,716,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000) Newtons
Calculations: Comparing A Boxer’s Punch To The Flash’s Infinite Mass Punch
Frank Bruno’s (Heavy Weight Boxer) Punch: 1,420 pounds or ~ 6,316 Newtons
How Many Times Stronger Flash’s Punch Would Be = 9.716 10^33 divided by 6,316 ~ 1.5383154 x 10^30 (1,538,315,400,000,000,000,000,000,000,000) Times Stronger Than A Elite Heavy Boxer’s Punch
Calculations: Comparing The Punch To A Nuclear Bomb
Strongest Tested Nuclear Bomb: 50 Megatons
Force In Megatons Of The Strongest Nuclear Bomb Tested + A Few Modifications = 100 Megatons
According To A Online Calculator On Its Most Precise Setting 9.716 x 10^33 Newtons Would Equal ~ 9.907562725293552 x 10^23 Megatons (or 99,075,627,252,935,520,000,000)
How Many Times Stronger Than A Nuclear Bomb = 9.907562725293552 x 10^23 divided by 100 ~ 9.907562725293552 x 10^21 (or 990,756,272,529,355,200,000) Times Stronger Than A Hypothetical Strength For A Modified Version Of The Strongest Nuclear Bomb
Calculation: Comparing It To 2 x 10^30 Kilograms Of TNT
Something That Has A Mass Of 1 Solar Mass Has The Mass Of Our Sun or 2 x 10^30 kg (or 2,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 kilograms):
1 Solar Mass Of TNT According To Wikipedia Would Have A Force Of ~ 2.3 x 10^33 Watt-Hours or ~ 8.28 x 10^51 Newtons
Flash’s Infinite Mass Punch’s Force < 1 Solar Mass Of TNT’s Force
Calculation: If the Flash’s Fist Collapsed Into A Black Hole
Mass Of Fist: 2.8 x 10^30 (or 2,800,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 kg)
Length Of Fist: This was hard to find, The Flash (Barry Allen and Iris West) is 6 ft tall or about 1.8288 meters and a 5 ft 8 in tall man or about 1.7271 meters has a length (from first knuckle to last knuckle) of 8.5 cm so I will find the unit rate of a meter of height to length of fist
The Unit Rate Of The Ratio Of Hand Length To Height Of Person (assuming that the ratio is accurate would work) (or 8.5/1.7271) ~ 4.921 cm (unit rate of height of a average male in a meter to their hand length)
The Flash’s Hand Length (or 4.921 x 1.8288) = The Radius Of The Black Hole ~ 8.999 cm
Surface Area Of Fist = Surface Area Of The Black Hole ~ According To Richard Kaye and Stephan Konz, A Spread Hand’s (The Flash’s Fist Is A Closed Fist Not A Spread Hand But They Would Have Similar Measurements) Surface Area Is .054 Square Meters
– “How Powerful Is The Flash’s Infinite Mass Punch”
Okay, we have to understand that we did not understand much of the calculus (we’re not scientists), but we wanted to include it for two reasons. The first is a sort of thank you to the author, whose amazing effort helped us write our article, and the other is a mathematical confirmation for those who do, actually, understand what it says here.
For those of you that just want a conclusion, we also have that:
Conclusion: The Flash’s Infinite Mass Punch would exert 9.716 x 10^33 (or 9,716,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000) Newtons, be 1.5383154 x 10^30 (1,538,315,400,000,000,000,000,000,000,000) times stronger than a elite heavy weight boxer’s punch, 9.907562725293552 x 10^21 (or 990,756,272,529,355,200,000) times stronger than a hypothetical strength for a modified version of the strongest tested nuclear bomb, but would be weaker than the explosion of 2 x 10^30 kilograms of TNT (or 2,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 kilograms/The mass of our sun).
The Flash’s Punch would be enough to destroy the Earth. If The Flash punched you, your body would explode sending your body parts flying at near light speeds similar to how shrapnel flies off of a grenade. I believe that because The Flash is way faster than One Punch Man, that The Flash could beat One Punch Man in a fight and (or) have a stronger punch than One Punch Man (for those who still don’t believe that’s strong enough the speed of light isn’t the fastest speed The Flash traveled, The Flash once ran at “trans-time velocity” which is infinite speed meaning infinite acceleration meaning infinite force which results in The Flash destroying infinite parallel universes with one step [, but because infinity – infinity = infinity that doesn’t mean the entire omniverse would be destroyed, also because infinite universes still exist after the punch they would replace or still contain those universes that were destroyed by the punch simulating no universes being destroyed and the speed force wouldn’t allow the destruction of all those universes, but his punch will still contain the force required to destroy infinite universes {its just it would be concentrated by the speed force via defying the laws of physics}, so The Flash can completely destroy any foe he comes in contact with], so at his strongest and with assistance from planet Earth [the people of Earth gave The Flash the energy to run at “trans-time velocity” by siphoning their kinetic energy into him] The Flash could beat One Punch Man in a single punch [if that doesn’t work The Flash could punch him again]).
The Flash really is the embodiment of “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” (-Muhammad Ali). And remember that’s the strength of The Flash’s Infinite Mass Punch assuming it took him a day to accelerate (The Flash definitely took less than a day to accelerate meaning his punch would be way stronger than what I wrote) and assuming The Flash’s Speedforce would stop his hand from collapsing and forming a black hole (if The Flash’s hand did it would be even stronger), thanks for reading!
– “How Powerful Is The Flash’s Infinite Mass Punch”
What is the strongest iteration of the Flash?
Before we give the answer to this question, let us just quickly revise the history of the four Flashes:
- The first Flash was Jay Garrick, a Golden Age character that introduced the Flash to the DC continuity. He became the Flash after a freakish laboratory experiment and decided to use his new skills to fight crime; at the time, he was a college student. Garrick was Flash initially from 1940 to 1951, then again from 1961 to 2011 and has been a part of the main continuity since 2017, although now very old. Due to the nature of the speed force and its role in balancing out the whole DC Multiverse, his appearances and his role in the main continuity have changed a lot over the years.
- The second and undoubtedly the most famous Flash is Barry Allen, the current “main” Flash and the rival of Eobard Thawne, the Reverse-Flash. Barry Allen donned the mantle from 1956 to 1985 and has been doing it since his “rebirth” in 2008. He is a forensic scientist who got his powers after lightning struck his laboratory and the chemicals inside. A very important part of his story is the murder of his mother by Thawne, for which his father was blamed; this is why Allen constantly tries not only to find out the truth, but also to change the past, which would ultimately result in the creation of the Flashpoint universe. He played a major role in most of DC’s universe-wide crossover events.
- Barry’s nephew, Wally West, took over the mantle in 1986 and wore it until 2011; he reappeared and has been donning it again since 2016. Wally West took over the mantle of the Flash after Barry Allen died in Crisis on Infinite Earths, after being the original Kid Flash. He got his powers the same way as his uncle (he is related to Barry’s wife, Iris West) and became his sidekick until he actually replaced him as the Flash. He has been a fan-favorite and is to date the fastest Flash among the group.
- The fourth and, to date, last person to don the Flash costume is Bart Allen, Barry Allen’s grandson, who was the Flash from 2006 to 2007. He appeared as the superhero Impulse, only to inherit the Kid Flash uniform from Wally West, before ultimately becoming The Flash. He is actually from the 30th century and spent most of his career as the sidekick to Wally West, becoming Flash after his death in the Final Crisis event in 2006. His tenure was brief, as Barry Allen soon returned and reclaimed his mantle.
Now that we know all the versions, can we pick the strongest one? Well, every Flash had something special of their own and that is why it is extremely difficult to pick out just one, especially since some of them have done truly amazing feats in their respective comic book histories. The only thing practically everyone agrees on is that Jay Garrick, the first Flash, is the weakest among the four.
As for the others – and we’re not counting some different versions like the Red Death from Metal or the Black Racer/Barry Allen version – we would say what Wally West is the most powerful of all the Flashes, especially the iteration of the character that appeared in the Kingdom Come storyline after Superman’s retirement. Why?
Well, Wally West has proven himself to have the strongest connection to the Speed Force of all the Flashes. And while Barry Allen has probably done the most for the DC Universe, it is Wally West that was always more powerful. He is the fastest among the Flashes and he has the strongest connection to the Speed Force, as evidenced by some of his feats and abilities. The Kingdom Come iteration of the character has gone even further in that aspect and that is why we declare it to be the most powerful version of the Flash.
And that’s it for today. We hope you had fun reading this and that we helped solve this dilemma for you. See you next time and don’t forget to follow us!
