Hans Christian Ørsted (often rendered Oersted in English; 14 August 1777 – 9 March 1851) is a Danish physicist and chemist who discovers shaped post-Kantian philosophy and advances in science throughout the late 19th century.

In 1824, Ørsted founds Selskabet for Naturlærens Udbredelse (SNU), a society to disseminate knowledge of the natural sciences.

He is also the founder of predecessor organizations which eventually become the Danish Meteorological Institute and the Danish Patent and Trademark Office.

Ørsted is the first modern thinker to explicitly describe and name the thought experiment.

A leader of the so-called Danish Golden Age, Ørsted is a close friend of Hans Christian Andersen and the brother of politician and jurist Anders Sandøe Ørsted, who eventually serves as Danish prime minister (1853–54).

The oersted (Oe), the cgs unit of magnetic H-field strength, is named after him.