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)

These Halloween horrors were all carved out of humble pumpkins by Ray Villafane and his team of professional sculptors who meticulously carved the terrifying characters using spoons and scalpels. Each one takes on average two hours to complete – with the horrifying results netting Villafane, plus colleagues Andy Bergholtz and Chris Vierra, numerous TV appearances each Halloween. This year the team has gone global travelling to Germany, Switzerland and Hong Kong to create their masterpieces. Photo: A horror face carved out of a pumpkin by Ray Villafane and team in Bellaire, Michigan. (Photo by Ray Villafane/Barcroft Media)

The pink fairy armadillo (Chlamyphorus truncatus) or pichiciego is the smallest species of armadillo (mammals of the family Dasypodidae, mostly known for having a bony armor shell). It is found in central Argentina, where it inhabits dry grasslands and sandy plains with thorn bushes and cacti.The pink fairy armadillo is approximately 90–115 mm (3.5-4.5 inches) long, excluding the tail, and is pale rose or pink in color. It has the ability to bury itself completely in a matter of seconds if frightened.

A logometer used to determine the Titanic's speed is seen among artifacts recovered from the RMS Titanic wreck site at a press preview of a Titanic artifact auction at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum on January 5, 2012 in New York City. On April 11, 2012, the 100th anniversary of the maiden voyage of the Titanic, Guernsey's will auction the complete collection of more than 5,000 artifacts recovered from the Titanic wreck site. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

“Lofoten Glow”. I was desperately searching a good sunrise spot this particular morning. Normally Storvatnet Lake is completely covered in snow, so you can only imagine my surprise when I saw these crazy ice formations almost being shot out of the frozen lake. I put my crampons on and took a big risk walking out. I could hear the ice cracking underneath my feet, and when you’re all alone in a fjord/canyon like this – the cracks are echoed and sound really frightening. Was it worth it? I sure think so! Photo location: Storvatnet, Lofoten Islands in Northern Norway. (Photo and caption by Stian Klo/National Geographic Photo Contest)

“A small British company with a dream of building a re-usable space plane has won an important endorsement from the European Space Agency (ESA) after completing key tests on its novel engine technology. Reaction Engines Ltd believes its Sabre engine, which would operate like a jet engine in the atmosphere and a rocket in space, could displace rockets for space access and transform air travel by bringing any destination on Earth to no more than four hours away”. – Chris Wickham via Reuters. Photo: Artist's impression of Skylon. (Photo by Reaction Engines Ltd)

“The Boeing X-45 unmanned combat air vehicle is a concept demonstrator for a next generation of completely autonomous military aircraft, developed by Boeing's Phantom Works. Manufactured by Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, the X-45 was a part of DARPA's J-UCAS project”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Two X-45A Unmanned Combat Air Vehicles (UCAV) are shown to members of the news media July 11, 2002 at Edwards Air Force Base, California. The X-45A, developed by The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the Boeing Company, is the first unmanned system designed from inception for combat missions. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)