In what year did Rudolf Diesel die?

Rudolf Diesel died in 1913, disappearing from the SS Dresden on the night of 29 September during a voyage from Antwerp to London.

Diesel was a German inventor and mechanical engineer whose work gave his name to both the diesel engine and diesel fuel. He pursued engines with greater thermal efficiency than steam engines and patented his engine concept in 1892. The first successful diesel engine was built in the 1890s.

His death remains mysterious. A body recovered from the Scheldt ten days after his disappearance was identified through personal belongings, but the body itself was returned to the water because of its condition. Some biographers have concluded that Diesel died by suicide, while other accounts have suggested accident or foul play.

The year can be confused with 1893, when Diesel published his influential treatise, or 1897, when a successful engine was demonstrated. Neither date marks his death.