  In this note we give a general definition of the gravitational tension in a
given asymptotically translationally-invariant spatial direction of a
space-time. The tension is defined via the extrinsic curvature in analogy with
the Hawking-Horowitz definition of energy. We show the consistency with the ADM
tension formulas for asymptotically-flat space-times, in particular for
Kaluza-Klein black hole solutions. Moreover, we apply the general tension
formula to near-extremal branes, constituting a check for non-asymptotically
flat space-times.
