Two professors from the University of Maryland were elected to become members of the National Academy of Engineering, the academy announced Monday.

Antonio Busalacchi Jr., an atmospheric and oceanic science professor, and James Hubbard Jr., an aerospace engineering professor, join 14 professors from this university who have been elected to the academy in the past.

The NAE is a nonprofit institution that provides engineering assistance to the federal government. It comprises more than 2,000 engineers from around the world.

Busalacchi and Hubbard were elected as part of a class of 80 new members from the United States and 22 members from other countries.

Peers elect members to the academy. The academy notified Busalacchi and Hubbard on Friday of its election.

“I was stunned,” Hubbard said. “I was actually shocked numb. I was laying in the middle of the floor.”

Hubbard was recognized for his work in adaptive, or “smart,” structures, which can respond to changes in the environment, university President Wallace Loh wrote in an email.

“Winning the award is such an unexpected honor,” Hubbard said. “Equally fulfilling is the warm and gracious emails of congratulations from my colleagues and former students. It’s been a wonderful experience that I will always cherish.”

The academy cited Busalacchi’s work with remote sensing of tropical oceans in coupled climate systems and his leadership in international climate prediction research.

Busalacchi said he is “humbled” by this honor and looks “forward to the opportunities to promote and recognize colleagues that are more deserving than I am.”

Busalacchi works with several NAE members as a co-chairman of the National Research Council’s Decadal Survey for Earth Science and Applications from Space.

“The research that I do on climates is really a topic that transcends basic research, applied research, and actually makes a difference in people’s lives, so I’m very gratified and fortunate to be recognized,” he said.

The newly elected class will attend an induction ceremony in Washington in October.