CEREBRA

Cerebro was the device that the X-Men used to detect mutants. It was created by Professor Charles Xavier, and was later enhanced by Dr. Henry McCoy. More recently, Cerebro has been replaced by Cerebra (referred to as Cerebro's big sister), a machine the size of a small room in the basement of Xavier's School For Higher Learning. It resembles a pod filled with a sparkling fog that condenses into representations of mental images.

Cerebra amplifies the brainwaves of the user. In the case of telepaths, it enables the user to detect traces of other mutants worldwide. Not much has been shown about how powerful it is; at times it has detected mutated aliens outside of the planet, when at others it could only scan for mutants' signatures in the United States. It is not clear whether it finds mutants by the power signature they send out when they use their powers or by the presence of the X-gene in their body, or a combination thereof.

Using Cerebra can be extremely dangerous, and telepaths without well-trained, disciplined minds put themselves at great risk when attempting to use it. This is due to the psychic feedback that users experience when operating Cerebra. As the device greatly enhances natural psychic ability, users who are unprepared for the sheer enormity of this increased psychic input can be quickly and easily overwhelmed, resulting in insanity, coma, permanent brain damage or even death

Some mutants have learned to shield themselves from Cerebra, usually via their own telepathic ability. Magneto can shield himself from the device through use of minimal telepathic powers. The only characters known to have used Cerebro on a frequent basis were Professor X and Jean Grey. However, in it's latest incarnation Emma Frost, Rachel Grey and Psylocke have used it with little harm or distress, and non-telepathic beings could use it if linked to the mind of a powerful telepath at the time of usage

Cerebra's files contain many bits of information and are stored and backed up in 32 hardened an