In the early hours of 14 January 1988 a large magnetic cloud passed the earth. In this brief article we show evidence of a sudden impulse associated with the leading edge of the main body of the magnetic cloud and we map the evolution of the convection patterns which are indicative of polar cap contraction associated with the subsequent, large, northward-directed interplanetary magnetic field. We provide a unique, step-by-step view of the high latitude events, simultaneously tracing both dayside and nightside responses to the solar wind variations. Our maps provide clear global-scale support for polar cap expansion/contraction theory. The final state of convection in the northern hemisphere was one of extreme quiescence with the suspension of both dayside and nightside reconnection and a near total loss of motional electric fields mapping into the ionosphere. We discuss how this state developed. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1996