Richard Vahsel (9 February 1868 – 8 August 1912) was a German naval officer who served as second officer on the Antarctic Gauss expedition, under command of Erich von Drygalski. In 1911, Vahsel was controversially appointed as captain of the Deutschland, on Wilhelm Filchner's Second German Antarctic Expedition, 1911–1913. Vahsel and Filchner proved incompatible, and the failure of their relationship fatally undermined the chances of the expedition's success.