Copasetic Flow

 We pushed the teletype prototype for Project TouCans further today! KO6BTY transmitted a CQ call on 2 meters, and I managed to decode it—at least semi-successfully—through audio from my K6 UVK5(8). It’s not perfect yet, but it’s another good sign that Project TouCans’ RTTY experiment is working. For those that don't remember, or weren't follwing along, I started workign on the possibility of teletype using Project TouCans back in May . I didn't have the time to add a frequency change relay and possibly a different internal keyer to TouCan's Rockmite, so I settled on converting the microPython code intended for TouCans into JavaScript that could be run on the blog using GPT. It worked. I knew this right away becasue DroidRTTY decoded the audio output of the blog page app. Meanwhile, CW on 2 meters has become kinda popular lately thanks to  KI7QCF . My mind put the two topics together today, and voila! Here's a video that explains it all. The semi-successful deco...

 This blog was mentioned by GPT5 in its answer to my somewhat obsure question about special relativity! Here's the question. Yes, I did already know the answer, I was just taking GPT5 as a research tool out for a spin after reading Simon Willison's GPT-5 aka Research Goblin  post . The answers it came back with were spot on. They highlighted Kerapatoff's involvement which I find particiularly interesting. Then, when I scrolled, (very far down), it's cited sources, I saw... in the 'More' section... As it turns out, the 'More' panel was intended as a 'You might find this intereseting' sort of thing. So, it's cool to see the blog on GPT-5, but GPT-5 didn't actually use the blog. AI and its sourciness (to coin a term) have come up a recently on the SolderSmoke blog. OK, off to listen to some recorded QSOs!

Extra Class Practice Exam (Stacked Bars with Toggle Groups) Extra Class Practice Exam Get ready for the FCC Extra Class license exam with this free online ham radio practice test. Our interactive exam tool uses the official FCC Element 4 Question Pool (valid July 2024–2028) and automatically tracks your performance. See your score history, review stacked bar charts of correct vs wrong answers by subelement, and drill down into specific group stats with a single click. This is the first practice run of the free online ham radio practice exams. I fully expect it to be a bit buggy. Please leave any suggestions or bug descriptions in the comments. Exam scores and statistics will be stored in the URL when you click 'New exam/Save Scores' after you complete an exam. To get back to your scores, you should be able to use the histsory feature in your browser, or if you'd rather, copy the link somewhere to put into a browser later. Important Note: To save your s...

 This week I spent some time tightening up the workflow for comparing F2 ionospheric data across different POTA outings. It turns out documentation really does matter. By writing things down, I’ve not only made the manual process clearer but also pushed the automated flow forward. With GPT-5’s help on documenting proton and electron flux plots, and my own notes on numeric F2 graphs along QSO paths, the project is steadily becoming easier to repeat and share. I put in a little bit of time working on being able to easily compare F2 data for different POTA outings this morning. It turns out documentation really does matter, so I've been focusing a bit more on it. I have a number of tools that allowed me to pull in F2 data quickly. This week I've been trying to spend time pulling them into an automated flow. As I've implemented this flow, I've discovered that I haven't taken the time to document the tools I've already built.  I asked GPT5 to document the solar prot...

Getting back to that Argentina call. One thing KO6BTY pointed out was that the FoF2 numbers didn't look normal. She was correct to an extent. They definitely didn't look like they did a few  months ago. Early morning UTC time, the critical frequency numbers looked like this Critical Frequency at time of QSO to LW2DO in Argentina A few months ago, in February though, they looked like this at roughly the same time of day. Critical Frequency map in February of 2025 a few hours earlier in the day Patterns in the F2 Layer If you're curious how she spotted the difference quickly, we've identified features that are usually on the map, the 'goose', and the 'face.' The Goose The Goose is characterized in profile with it's beak usually outlined in blue. It's circled by the green line above. The Face The Face is perhaps a bit more obvious. Again, it's circled in green. The two low critical frquency zones, (black regions), form the eyes. The black spot ...

  While analyzing the skip path of a a 5-watt QSO I made last week from the San Francisco to Argentina with Project TouCans, I stumbled across a set of NOAA resources that completely changed how I look at ionospheric conditions. From real-time aurora dashboards to animated MUF forecasts and electron flux data, these tools offer hams powerful insights into propagation—and some surprises along the way. I made a grey line QSO from the campus of City College San Francisco to Argentina with our 5-watt Project TouCans rig last week. Last night, KO6BTY and I found ourselves deep in the rabbit hole of ionospheric conditions. What started as curiosity about the Kp index and whether aurora activity might have influenced the QSO's skip path, led us to discover some powerful NOAA resources. From aurora dashboards and global ionosphere forecasts to animated MUF predictions and GOES electron flux data, these tools give ham radio operators new ways to understand HF propagation, F2 layer behavior...

  Live portable ham radio from San Francisco’s Presidio with a clean take-off toward the Pacific. Route via PresidiGo, light wire vertical, and a crystal-locked 14.0574 MHz start. I keep local times in the story; the QSO map is in UTC. I arrived downtown at Embarcadero Station at 15:20 PST yesterday with Project Toucans , a portable ham radio. There was a newly married couple, still in their dress and tux, waiting to ride the cable car up towards California and Powell. I was waiting for the PresidiGo bus out to the Presidio. It's a free bus out to the park that passes through downtown several times a day. I hopped on the bus at 4 PM downtown. After a few stops at 4:07 PM PST, the bus was completely full. Interestingly, when we arrived at the first Presidio stop at 4:15, almost everyone got off and exited the Presidio back towards town. I don't know why. The bus winded through the rest of the Presidio towards the transit center. The center is right in front of the new park, cal...