Art by John Byrne

First Appearance:
THE X-MEN (1963) #120

Real Name: Jean-Paul Beaubier
Affiliations: X-Men, TeamNorthstar
Past_Affiliations: FLQ, Alpha Flight, HYDRA
Status: Inactive
Aliases: Jean-Paul Martin
Relatives: Beaubier,Jean-Baptiste (father, deceased), unnamed mother (deceased), Martin,Louis (adoptive father, deceased), unnamed adoptive mother (deceased), Jeanne-Marie Beaubier (Aurora, sister), Beaubier,Joanne (adopted daughter, deceased)
Height: 5'11“
Weight: 175 lbs
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Black

When Jean-Paul Beaubier was a young child his parents died in an automobile accident. He was adopted by the Martin family, while his sister, Jeanne-Marie, was sent to live in catholic girls boarding-school. The Martins died when Jean-Paul was six, and he was sent into foster care. When Jean-Paul was caught trying to steal from Belmonde,Raymonde, Belmonde took the troubled youth in and became his mentor and guardian, helping him cope with both his emerging powers as well as his homosexuality.

In time Jean-Paul moved to Paris where he befriended a woman named Mariel and a man named Yves. When Mariel scolded him for flaunting his powers, Jean-Paul became upset, he felt that the two people he felt the most free with were trying to constrain him. Having left Paris and returned to Quebec, he joined the D'arbanville Circus. As an acrobat Jean-Paul used his own skill, refraining from relying on his powers. D'arbanville,Clementine, the circus owner was involved with the FLQ, and she introduced Jean-Paul to the cause. Feeling the need to make a mark on the world, Jean-Paul engaged in protests, property destruction, and eventually terrorism. He seems to have used his powers in service to the FLQ mostly as a messenger. When he became aware of his group's plan to blow up the Quebec City Bus Terminal, Jean-Paul turned terrorism into heroism. A bomb had been planted in a garbage can, and shortly before its detonation, Jean-Paul threw it away from the innocents in the terminal. That was a turning point in Jean-Paul's life, when he realized his powers could be used for good.

James MacDonald Hudson of Canada's superhuman development program Department H had recruited Jeanne-Marie and correlated her abilities and appearance with that of Jean-Paul, who had employed his powers to become a professional downhill skier, earning fame and fortune and an Olympic medal. Hudson noted Jean-Paul's rise from “a mediocre skier until he learned he could fly? and summoned Jean-Paul to Ottawa, revealed his certainty of Jean-Paul's powers and reunited Jean-Paul and Jeanne-Marie. Upon meeting, the twins shook hands. To everyone?s surprise, the hand to hand contact generated intense bioluminescence. Both twins immediately redefined themselves to this newly discovered familial connection. Martin legally changed his surname back to Beaubier, and both twins chose the code-names Aurora and Northstar that reflected their joint power to generate light, even over their independent abilities to fly and move at super speeds.

Jean-Paul joined Alpha Flight as Northstar to be with his sister and, in some ways, to make up for his part in dangerous terrorist activities. His role with the team remained tenuous.

The dynamic between the twins proved complicated. Aurora knew that her brother was homosexual. A sexually liberated woman, Aurora was not bothered by it. The conservative fundamentalism of Jeanne-Marie seemed not to know this fact as early in their relationship as Aurora knew, and would undoubtedly disapprove. Another mugging attempt against Jeanne-Marie triggered the personality change back to Aurora.

Wanting to individualize herself from her brother, Aurora had Sasquatch genetically modify her biochemistry to make her light powers no longer dependent on contact with Northstar.

Jean-Paul developed a tearing cough. When Pestilence fed off the “death and decay within” Northstar's body, the illness was greatly worsened. He steadily grew more and more ill until he was almost completely incapacitated. Looking to cure Northstar's physical symptoms and Aurora's worsening MPD, team went to find the Firefountain, a source of magical power which they thought might have been able to cure both twins.

He never reached the Firefountain, as Loki convinced him that his and his Aurora's mother had an Asgardian elf. Northstar was then fooled into believing that he was dying because he could not exist on earth without the light that the twins had once shared. Aurora expelled all of her light into her brother to save him, leaving her powers drained. Powerless, she was dragged off by demons. Northstar then flew to Asgard through a gate opened by Loki. When Loki was summoned before the higher gods, They Who Sit Above in Shadow, he transported Aurora to a monastery to atone for his trickery.

Jean-Paul spent quite some time in Asgard, until he was needed in the conflict against Llan. Talisman sent Aurora, Goblyn, Laura Dean and Persuasion to retrieve him. They arrived just in time to save him from being slain by Dark Elves who worshipped Llan. He was able to heal his sister as she had previously healed him, by sharing their powers through touch. Both re-powered with the permanent change that both could generate light independently of each other, both twins re-joined Alpha Flight. They now knew that Loki's revelation of their family history had been entirely fabricated, but to this day neither have seemed interested in exploring the circumstances of their parents' deaths. When Alpha Flight regained Canadian sponsorship, Northstar served with them

While battling Mister Hyde, Northstar was knocked clear of the battle and found a small baby girl abandoned in a garbage can in an alley, and sped her to the hospital. Several weeks later Jean-Paul learned that the baby had AIDS. Jean-Paul adopted the girl, naming her Beaubier,Joanne. The entire affair made a lot of press, and did not go unnoticed by Lou Sadler Sr, the former MajorMapleleaf. Sadler had gone mad with grief over his son Michael's death from AIDS not long before.
To protect his daughter, Northstar engaged Mapleleaf in battle, during which Jean-Paul admitted that he too was gay. Saddler convinced Beaubier that he had a duty as a public figure to go public with his sexuality. It was not long after that Joanne died in Jean-Paul's arms, with Major Mapleleaf at his side to console him. Jean Paul, in a press conference made his sexuality public, in hopes to open the doors to conversation in context of the AIDS crisis.

A bout of depression hit Northstar some time later, as he felt he had lost his purpose in life, which brought him to an attempted suicide. Realizing one of the main element missing in his life was his sister, he began to seek her out. In doing so, they both joined with Alpha Flight to battle the menace of the new Weapon X.
After this battle ended, Northstar semi-retired to write his memoirs as a gay Super Hero.
During the book tour, Jean Grey of the X-Men asked Northstar to join an X-Men strike force. Though at first Northstar declined the request, he did eventually consent to take part. The mission was successful, and Northstar's contribution was very important to the mission's success. At this time Jean-Paul decided not to stay with the X-Men. He was not yet aware that his sister was no longer safe with Alpha Flight, but that she had disappeared.

It was not long after Jean-Paul's first mission with the X-Men, that Professor Charles Xavier asked him to join the teaching staff at Xavier's School for the Gifted. While he considered his options, Northstar joined the X-Men on a mission involving a young mutant who's powers were killing him. When the child died, Northstar realized it was his duty to help other young mutants, and accepted Xavier's offer. His roles at the Xavier institute involved teaching Business & Economics, giving flight classes and serving as a student adviser.

When Hand captured and brainwashed Wolverine into attacking the Xavier Institute, Wolverine fatally stabbed Northstar. His body was later stolen by The Hand and resurrected in a brainwashed state. He lead the attack of similarly controlled super-beings against SHIELD Eventually Northstar was captured by Wolverine (Whom S.H.I.E.L.D. had deprogrammed) and was taken into their custody for deprogramming.

ChildrenOfTheVault, who exploited Northstar's mental vulnerabilities and brainwashing to recruit him into their battle against the X-Men. The Children had also kidnaped a mentally destabilized Aurora; they boosted the powers of both twins and manipulated or brainwashed the twins into attacking the X-Men.

Following the defeat of The Children, Rogue delivered both twins to the S.H.I.E.L.D helicarrier in an attempt to reverse the multiple layers of brainwashing that each twin had undergone since the disbanding of the version of Alpha Flight on which they had both last served. The process itself did not cure the twins. However, proximity and mutual connection to the same mental-manipulative machinery allowed the twins to again merge their powers.

With their powers restored, the twins became reserve members for the X-Men, before Northstar once again joined the team.

During Unity's takeover of Canada (in the events of Fear, Itself), his boyfriend Kyle was taken over by the Unity process, a mind-control process of vague purpose.
The process led Kyle to hate Northstar; however, he was cured when Alpha Flight ended the threat.

Northstar has since been spending his time in New York with the X-Men and Kyle, who seems to have moved there.

Northstar's mutant powers include the ability to utilize the atomic motion within his molecules to propel his body through the air at superhuman speeds. Theoretically, Northstar has the potential to travel at speeds approaching light itself. He has a strong resistance to physical stress and temperature extremes, allowing him to stay unharmed when he utilizes his speed. He also emits a soft, blue light.

Accelerated Metabolism: Both Aurora and Northstar have a boosted metabolism that can be used to heal wounds quickly.

Durability: As a side effect of partially robbing his molecules of their atomic motion, the binding forces within and between the molecules increase. This enhances the sheer toughness of Northstar's entire body. This effect gives his skin enough durability to withstand the ravages of wind, friction and air turbulence. He is durable enough to collide into normal human being at mach three speeds and not sustain any damage from the impact. Due to the alterations by the Children of the Vault, Northstar gained superhuman durability.

Flashbang: It used to be necessary for him to make physical contact with his sister to be able to generate a bright light. However, after the resurrection by The Hand, Northstar is capable of doing this on his own, half a million candles bright.

G-Force Compensation:

Pyrokinetics: Due to the alterations by the Children of the Vault, the twins gained a new ability by touching hands it generates a massive pyrokinetic attack that destroys the surrounding area and people instantly with it.

Reflexes: Northstar has heightened reflexes even to the point running speeds faster than mach 18.7 actually traveling 2.5km/sec. That orbital velocity [Mach 18.7-Mach 23.3] while still dodging cars and buildings doing this. His reflexes are far above the average human, but often at times Northstar and Aurora are shown not to have any at all

Speed: Through an act of concentration, Northstar can channel a portion of the kinetic energy of the atomic motion in his body's molecules in a single direction. This can accelerate his body in a velocity in direct proportion to the amount of kinetic energy she has tapped. He is capable of going 99% the speed of light, but is limited due to he would sustain great damage to himself and the environment if he reached that speed. Northstar can safely go Mach 10 without causing any damage.

Strength: Due to the alterations by the Children of the Vault, the twins gained superhuman strength.