During the late morning and early afternoon of 26 January 1996, heavy snow fell in a 50 mile wide band across eastern Iowa and extreme northwest Illinois. Accumulations ranged from 1 to 13 inches in the National Weather Service Davenport, Iowa (NWSO DVN) county warning area. Most of the snowfall occurred in less than 8 hours. Many locations along the Mississippi River reported lightning and thunder with the snow and snowfall rates as high as 3 inches per hour.

In this study, the analysis and role of coupled jet streaks will be assessed or analyzed using vertical motion fields, Q-vectors, and ageostrophic circulations to illustrate the potential for heavy snow across eastern Iowa and northwest Illinois. An examination of a tropopause fold and its possible role in rapid cyclogenesis is also included.