BOULDER — Antonio “Tony” J. Busalacchi, president of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, will be inducted into the National Academy of Engineering during a ceremony in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 9.

Inductees to the academy have made outstanding contributions to engineering research, practice or education. It is among the highest professional distinctions accorded to an engineer and those working at the intersection of science and engineering.

Busalacchi was elected for his contributions to “understanding of tropical oceans in coupled climate systems via remotely sensed observations and for international leadership of climate prediction/projection research.”

Busalacchi is one of 80 U.S. members and 22 foreign members who will be inducted. He joins other past inductees from UCAR or the National Center for Atmospheric Research, which is managed by UCAR on behalf of the National Science Foundation. Those academy members include C. Gordon Little (1974), Robert Serafin (1994), Margaret LeMone (1997), Robert Dickinson (2002), Warren Washington (2002) and Timothy Killeen (2007).

UCAR is a consortium of more than 100 North American member colleges and universities focused on research and training in the atmospheric and related Earth system sciences.

Busalacchi joined UCAR as president in August. He was previously the director of the Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center at the University of Maryland.