AbstractThe high-field linear and quadratic Zeeman effect has been observed in nitroethylene. The spectrum is complicated by the presence of 14N nuclear quadrupole coupling which was reanalyzed from low-J zero-field transitions observed under high resolution. Our 14N quadrupole coupling constants are Xaa = -0.8887(18) MHz, Xbb = +0.0429(29) MHz, Xcc = +0.8458(29) MHz (c-axis perpendicular to the molecular plane). Our g-values and magnetic susceptibility anisotropics, fitted to the observed high-field Zeeman multiplets, are gaa = -0.15 985(39), -0.07197(31), gcc= -0.01080(32), 2ξaa-ξbb-ξcc= + 19.07(43) * 10-6 erg * G-2 * mole-1 and 2ξbb- ξcc- ξaa = + 29.67(53) -10-6 erg * G-2 * mole-1 . From them, the anisotropics in the second moments of the electronic charge distribution and the components of the molecular electric quadrupole moment with respect to the principal inertia axes system follow as <a2> -<b2> = +36.55(7)Å2 , <b2> - <c2>= +23.58(9) Å2, <c2>-<a2> = -60.14(8) Å2, Qaa= -0.59(29) D * Å, Qbb = +0.07(36) D * Å, and Qcc = +0.52(46) D * Å. The 14N quadrupole coupling constants, the anisotropics in the second electronic moments and the quadrupole moments are compared to the corresponding Hartree-Fock SCF values calculated with the Gaussian 88 program. The discrepancy between the experimental values and the ab initio values is considerably larger than found earlier in a similar investigation of a group of imines