John Francis Ropek this nuclear submarine, Ropek was involved in pioneering oceanographic studies under the polar ice cap of the North Pole, resulting in the report "Characteristics of Polar Ice Observed During the 1957 Arctic Cruise of the USS Nautilus" (Defense Technical Information Center 1958). As a scientist he published many technical papers, such as "US Navy Hydrographic Office synoptic and prognostic wave charts" (US Navy Hydrographic Office 1955), and "An Application of Naval Oceanographic Development to Inland Waters" (Defense Technical Information Center 1967). Later, Ropek was deputy director of the prediction division of the Naval Oceanographic Office. Late in life he lived
Submarine Force Library and Museum 1997 the Committee decided to start planning and raising funds for a addition to the museum building. Fundraising started the next year, and construction project ran from 1998 to early 2000. The new addition was officially opened to the public on April 28, 2000 "in conjunction with the Centennial Celebration of the United States Submarine Force", according to the museum. The museum has 33,000 artifacts, including the first nuclear-powered submarine in the world, the . Launched in 1955 and decommissioned in 1980, the submarine had traveled under the polar ice cap and reached the North Pole during the Cold War.