The thermal decomposition of nitromethane under highly diluted conditions in shock tubes has been analyzed in terms of a detailed chemical kinetic model. The experimental data were adopted from Glä nzer and Troe, Hsu and Lin, and Zhang and Bauer, respectively; they cover the temperature range and pressures from 0.5 to 6.0 bar. Based on 1000-1400 K these results, rate constants for the reactions (R1) andThe high and low pressure limits for reaction (R1) determined by Glä nzer and Troe have been shown to be consistent with more recent shock tube data, provided a center broadening parameter is introduced to describe the fall-off behavior. Our reinterpretation of the shock tube results of Glä nzer and Troe together with room temperature measurements indicate that the rate constant for (R14) decreases slightly with temperature, as cm mol s . order of magnitude faster than recombination of CH 3 and NO 2 to form nitromethane. Based on the available data for the forward and reverse rate of reaction (R1) a value of 66.7 Ϯ 2.0 cal/(mol K) for the entropy S 0,298 of CH 3 NO 2 is estimated.