Karl Otto Christe (born July 24, 1936) is an inorganic chemist.

His research covers fluorine chemistry of nitrogen and halogens and the synthesis of new energetic materials.

In 1967 he joined Rocketdyne Division Rockwell International in Canoga Park where he became the manager of research in 1978.

Another important field of his work covers the research on homoleptic nitrogen compounds for use in energetic materials.

In 1996, Christe was the first to propose the use of ionic liquids as energetic materials in propulsion systems.