The northeastern United States sweltered this week in a scorching summer heat wave, complete with stagnant, sticky air and no winds for relief, forecasters said. Even in a summer already filled with stretches of very hot weather, this week will be stubbornly brutal, with no relief in sight until the weekend brings thunderstorms to the region, they said. "Plain and simple, this week may feel the worst of any week for this summer in the Northeast," said Accuweather.com meteorologist Alex Sosnowski. (Reuters)

This photo provided by NASA shows a full moon rising behind the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket with NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft onboard at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Space Launch Complex 41, Sunday, November 17, 2013, Cape Canaveral, Florida. NASA's next Mars-bound spacecraft, the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, is the first spacecraft devoted to exploring and understanding the Martian upper atmosphere. (Photo by Bill Ingalls/AP Photo/NASA)

Peacocks are seen covered in bags as a protection of their plume during transportation, in Xiangyang, Hubei province, China April 12, 2017. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

Mount Etna erupts in Sicily, Italy on February 21, 2021 sending plumes of ash and spewing lava into air. There was a major increase in volcanic activity that led to a paroxysmal event at the Southeast crater for the fourth time in the past six days. (Photo by Wead/Alamy Live News)

Praia du Forte, Bahia. “This was the lead picture for a National Geographic story on Bahia, because it was both mysterious as well as a “geography” picture showing where the slaves arrived from Nigeria. Beach pictures seem like they should be easy to take, but for me they are actually quite difficult. Too easy to fall into cliche. When I saw the kid coming on the horse, I quickly ran to see if I could make something with a woman in a bikini that was not a bikini shot”. (Photo by David Alan Harvey/The Guardian)

Workers carry sacks of tea leaves at a tea estate in Nagaon district in the northeastern state of Assam, India, August 22, 2016. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

Seven year old Hungarian herding dog Derci runs along the Olympiaberg hill during stormy weather in Munich, southern Germany, Monday, January 4, 2016. (Photo by Matthias Balk/DPA via AP Photo)

Veteran racehorse Morestead models the world's first authentic Harris Tweed suit designed for a racing horse, which has been specially commissioned by William Hill to celebrate the opening of this year's Cheltenham Festival on March 15, 2016 in the U.K. (Photo by Joe Pepler/Rex Features/Shutterstock)