Otto Lilienthal.Photo:ullstein bild/ullstein bild via Getty
ullstein bild/ullstein bild via Getty
Wikipedia’s record places Rush and theTitandirectly under naval architect Thomas Andrews and his maritime invention: theRMSTitanic. The shipbuilder died along with 1,500 other passengers when the boat crashed and sank to the seafloor in 1912. Unlike the debris of the boat he designed, Andrews' body was never found.
Read more about Stockton Rush, Thomas Andrews and other tragic figures who add a disturbing layer to the phrase “meet your maker.”
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Stockton Rush
Stockton Rush and the OceanGate submersible.AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee; Alamy Stock Photo
AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee; Alamy Stock Photo
Stockton Rush, the CEO of OceanGate Expeditions, died inside of hisTitansubmersible, a compact vessel Rush created to explore the wreckage of the ill-fatedRMS Titanic. The engineer and four otherTitanpassengerswere declared missingduring a June 2023 mission to the sunken ship, which lies 12,500 feet under water. It was later confirmed that the submersible – which bolted in explorers from the outside –had implodedunder the deep sea’s pressure.
Fred Hagen, a previous passenger on theTitan, told PEOPLE that Rush constructed the 20-foot-long vehicle to “democratize the sea and open it up to individuals.” He qualified that Rush’s deep sea exploration wasnota tourist endeavor. TheTitan, said Hagen, was meant to hold “mission specialists” with passions for science, history and “recording the condition and deterioration of the iconic shipwreck known as theTitanic.”
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Thomas Andrews
Thomas Andrews and the RMS Titanic.Alamy Stock Photo; Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty
Alamy Stock Photo; Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty
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Luis Jiménez
Luis Jimenez and his “Mustang” sculpture at the Denver Airport.Smithsonian American Art Museum/YouTube; George Rose/Getty
Smithsonian American Art Museum/YouTube; George Rose/Getty
The bright blue horse was completed after its creator’s death, and still stands outside of the Colorado airport.
04of 08Jean-François Pilâtre de RozierJean-François Pilâtre de Rozier.API/Gamma-Rapho via GettyIn 1783, Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier made the first untethered manned balloon flight. He tragically made aviation history again in 1785, when he crashed his own invention, the hybrid Rozière balloon. Rozier and his flight companion, Pierre Romain, became the first two people to die in an air crash.Despite the violent end to its inventor’s life, the Rozière balloon – which uses a combination of hot air and helium – continues to be used today. In 2016, voyager Fyodor Konyukhov flew the vessel around the world in just 11 days,setting a world recordfor fastest balloon circumnavigation.
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Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier
Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier.API/Gamma-Rapho via Getty
API/Gamma-Rapho via Getty
In 1783, Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier made the first untethered manned balloon flight. He tragically made aviation history again in 1785, when he crashed his own invention, the hybrid Rozière balloon. Rozier and his flight companion, Pierre Romain, became the first two people to die in an air crash.
Despite the violent end to its inventor’s life, the Rozière balloon – which uses a combination of hot air and helium – continues to be used today. In 2016, voyager Fyodor Konyukhov flew the vessel around the world in just 11 days,setting a world recordfor fastest balloon circumnavigation.
05of 08Otto LilienthalOtto Lilienthal.ullstein bild/ullstein bild via GettyGerman inventor Otto Lilienthal met an untimely end when he fell nearly 50 feet through the air while operating the first controllable glider. The inventor first operated the hang glider’s predecessor in 1891, just five years before his death. He pioneered the aerodynamic phenomenon known “heavier than air” flight, which led to the conception of the fixed-wing aircraft.His legacy speaks for itself: Lilienthal is widely remembered as the “father of flight,” and the Wright Brotherscredited his discoveriesas one of their chief inspirations.
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Otto Lilienthal
Otto Lilienthal.ullstein bild/ullstein bild via Getty
German inventor Otto Lilienthal met an untimely end when he fell nearly 50 feet through the air while operating the first controllable glider. The inventor first operated the hang glider’s predecessor in 1891, just five years before his death. He pioneered the aerodynamic phenomenon known “heavier than air” flight, which led to the conception of the fixed-wing aircraft.
His legacy speaks for itself: Lilienthal is widely remembered as the “father of flight,” and the Wright Brotherscredited his discoveriesas one of their chief inspirations.
06of 08Franz ReicheltFranz Reichelt.ullstein bild/ullstein bild via GettyRemembered as the “flying tailor,” Franz Reichelt jumped off the Eiffel Tower to his death while trying to test a wearable parachute in 1912. The dressmaker’s goal was to create a way for pilots to survive a fall from an aircraft, but in the end he was unable to achieve the same success he observed when using dummies.Reichelt informed the press of his intention to perform an experiment, though he didn’t reveal that he’d be the test subject, not a dummy. A crowd of people saw the inventor’s worn parachute fold immediately in the air and watched his gruesome fall.
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Franz Reichelt
Franz Reichelt.ullstein bild/ullstein bild via Getty
Remembered as the “flying tailor,” Franz Reichelt jumped off the Eiffel Tower to his death while trying to test a wearable parachute in 1912. The dressmaker’s goal was to create a way for pilots to survive a fall from an aircraft, but in the end he was unable to achieve the same success he observed when using dummies.
Reichelt informed the press of his intention to perform an experiment, though he didn’t reveal that he’d be the test subject, not a dummy. A crowd of people saw the inventor’s worn parachute fold immediately in the air and watched his gruesome fall.
07of 08Marie CurieMarie Curie.Bettmann/GettyThanks to her trailblazing research and discovery of radioactive elements,Marie Curiewon Nobel Prizes in physics and chemistry. She was the first woman to win the award, the first person to win twice and remains the only person to win the prize for work in two different fields.Curie’s great success in radioactivity (a term which she coined) also paved the way for her demise. She contracted aplastic anemia and died at age 66 in 1934. Her fatal condition was believed to be the result of prolonged exposure to ionizing radiation, the danger of which wasn’t yet understood at the time.According toThe New York Times, Curie never acknowledged radioactivity’s toll on her health. However her daughter, Irene Joliot-Curie, and son-in-law, Frederic Joliot-Curie, also died of radiation-induced diseases after they continued her work in with the harmful materials.
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Marie Curie
Marie Curie.Bettmann/Getty
Thanks to her trailblazing research and discovery of radioactive elements,Marie Curiewon Nobel Prizes in physics and chemistry. She was the first woman to win the award, the first person to win twice and remains the only person to win the prize for work in two different fields.
Curie’s great success in radioactivity (a term which she coined) also paved the way for her demise. She contracted aplastic anemia and died at age 66 in 1934. Her fatal condition was believed to be the result of prolonged exposure to ionizing radiation, the danger of which wasn’t yet understood at the time.
According toThe New York Times, Curie never acknowledged radioactivity’s toll on her health. However her daughter, Irene Joliot-Curie, and son-in-law, Frederic Joliot-Curie, also died of radiation-induced diseases after they continued her work in with the harmful materials.
08of 08William BullockWilliam Bullock’s Rotary Press.Alamy Stock PhotoWilliam Bullock greatly advanced the publishing industry when he introduced the web rotary press (pictured) in 1863, an improved version of Richard March Roe’s original press made 20 years earlier. Using Bullock’s new device, operators no longer had to tediously hand-feed paper into the machines. The printing press self-adjusted and automatically loaded large amounts of paper into rollers.In 1867, Bullock jammed his leg in one of the machines while installing a web rotary press for the Philadelphia Public Ledger newspaper. The injury led to gangrene, and Bullock died during his amputation operation.
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William Bullock
William Bullock’s Rotary Press.Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
William Bullock greatly advanced the publishing industry when he introduced the web rotary press (pictured) in 1863, an improved version of Richard March Roe’s original press made 20 years earlier. Using Bullock’s new device, operators no longer had to tediously hand-feed paper into the machines. The printing press self-adjusted and automatically loaded large amounts of paper into rollers.
In 1867, Bullock jammed his leg in one of the machines while installing a web rotary press for the Philadelphia Public Ledger newspaper. The injury led to gangrene, and Bullock died during his amputation operation.
source: people.com
