t’s the end of the world as we know it… and Dr. Wieslaw Maslowski feels fine. This, despite the fact that the Naval Postgraduate School associate research professor spends most of his time – sometimes as many as 70 hours a week – studying the drastic environmental changes confronting mankind. Given his easygoing demeanor, you would never know it.

Maslowski says there’s a simple reason why he seems so buoyant in the face of troubling data: He loves what he’s doing.

“I have always been a big fan of sailing and sailboats,” he says, “I like water and the ocean, and wanted to understand water and ocean circulation. It worked out very well for me – I enjoy what I’m doing, I find it very interesting, and I don’t mind extra work. I do it simply to understand the Arctic Ocean better.”

Maslowski’s passion translates to more than long work weeks. It has bred expertise elsewhere in his household.

“My family has been forced to listen to my stories and findings and conclusions for pretty much the whole life of my career,” he says. “They don’t have actual degrees in oceanography but they [deserve] at least a bachelor’s.

“My wife is pretty much able and capable to explain things very well – I won’t do as good a job as she can talking to regular people.”

The father of two looks far too young to be one of the foremost experts in his field, in which he has more than 30 years of experience. He leans back comfortably in his chair in his NPS office as he ruminates on the fate of polar bears, penguins and the planet. As he does, his slight Polish accent somehow adds to his scientific authority.

As he talks he draws freehand sketches of aerial ice coverage with practiced precision. All of his research and hard work have led to one shocking projection: The Arctic Circle soon may be free of ice.

When the important people start looking closely at global warming, his cell number is one they want. Al Gore’s people called the other day, wanting to check some facts about Arctic sea ice.

“The fact [that they called] gives you a type of satisfaction that keeps you going,” says Maslowski, who also is quite proud that Gore mentioned his group during his recent Nobel Peace Prize lecture. “[It] provides an extra motivation for future work.”

Maslowski’s model simulations from 1979-2004 show a steady decline both in the area covered by Arctic sea ice and in ice thickness. He has a word for the change: “dramatic.”

This past summer the results were sobering: Twenty-five percent less ice coverage than in the summer of 2005, which was the previous record minimum. In fact, evidence suggests the Arctic Ocean may have iceless summers by around 2015. “There is strong evidence that this is happening,” Maslowski says. “You cannot neglect it.”

Frustration surfaces when the oceanographer discusses leadership on the national level. “[The government] is too busy doing other things,” he says. “Furthermore, we are not taking advantage of what we already know to prepare for the future. We should be building ships for the U.S. Coast Guard and the Navy to operate in the seasonally ice-covered Arctic Ocean. With all the new activity in the region there will be accidents involving people and the natural environment. We will need the right ships to do search and rescue, as well as for national defense.”

Increasing media coverage does give Maslowski hope.

“I’ve been very impressed by amount of attention the Arctic has received,” he says. “It’s increasing every year.”

Maslowski finds another reason to be optimistic about the future, found in the fact that people are changing their habits as more information appears. “I can see things are happening now. Some private industries are responding to the demands of people, for example. Any change will have to come from the bottom up.”

Then there’s another key reason he’s upbeat: He gets to help uncover the information to inform future decisions. He can launch into a discussion of ice and climate at any point – as with he did recently with a rapid-fire rundown of a current project funded by the Department of Energy, casually throwing out terms like “regional Artic climate model,” “feedback processes” and “retreating ice simulations.”

“We don’t know for sure what will happen 10 years from now,” says Maslowski, “but we’re trying to understand enough about what’s happening now to gather the information that we need and the tools to respond.”