300 BCE
Water wheels harness rivers
Greek and Roman water wheels convert flowing water into rotary work for milling grain. Source — Wikipedia:
Chronological Storyline (11 Milestones)
31 CE
Du Shi’s water-powered bellows
Han-dynasty engineer Du Shi (杜诗, Dù Shī) drives metallurgical bellows with a water wheel, an early industrial prime mover. Source — Wikipedia:
70 CE
Hero’s aeolipile (steam reaction)
Hero of Alexandria builds the aeolipile, a spinning steam device — the earliest known steam-powered machine. Source — Wikipedia:
900 CE
Persian windmills at Nashtifan
Vertical-axis windmills in Persia grind grain using wind, among the world’s oldest working windmills. Source — Wikipedia:
1206 CE
Al-Jazari’s crank & camshaft
Al-Jazari describes the crankshaft and camshaft, mechanisms central to later engines. Source — Wikipedia:
1232 CE
Chinese gunpowder rockets
Song (宋) - dynasty China deploys fire-arrows — gunpowder rockets — the ancestors of rocket propulsion. Source — Wikipedia:
1769 CE
Watt’s efficient steam engine
James Watt’s separate condenser makes steam power efficient enough to drive the Industrial Revolution. Source — Wikipedia:
1876 CE
Otto four-stroke engine
Nikolaus Otto’s four-stroke cycle becomes the basis of the internal-combustion engine. Source — Wikipedia:
1892 CE
Diesel’s compression engine
Rudolf Diesel patents the efficient compression-ignition engine that powers heavy transport. Source — Wikipedia:
1926 CE
Goddard’s liquid-fuel rocket
Robert Goddard launches the first liquid-fuelled rocket, building on Tsiolkovsky’s theory. Source — Wikipedia:
1939 CE
First jet aircraft flight
Hans von Ohain’s engine powers the Heinkel He 178; Frank Whittle independently develops the jet in Britain. Source — Wikipedia: