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)

Sergey, one of the participants of PARTISAN courses, poses for a portrait in an abandoned building in Olgino, St. Petersburg, Russia on November 23, 2016. Sergey came to St. Petersburg from the city of Cheliabinsk to attend an intensive seven-day program. Sergey is a businessman, a traveller and a blogger. His another passion are “men's hobbies”, that's why he participated in the paramilitary courses. (Photo by Alexander Aksakov/The Washington Post)

An employee of Daikin Industries Ltd works the production line of outdoor air conditioning units at the company's Kusatsu factory in Shiga prefecture, western Japan March 20, 2015. As Japan heads into the season of peak demand for room air-conditioners, Daikin managers have been tasked with figuring out how to boost output by some 20 percent at the 45-year-old Kusatsu plant that six years ago the company had almost given up on as unprofitable. (Photo by Yuya Shino/Reuters)

Hot air balloons fly over Igualada during an early flight as part of the European Balloon Festival on July 10, 2014 in Igualada, Spain. The early morning flight of over 30 balloons was shorter than expected due to windy weather. This flight is organised as a curtain raiser for the four-day European Balloon Festival. Now is the 18th year of the most important hot air Balloon event in Spain and one of the biggest in Europe. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

The hot air balloon “Hopper T Frog” from Park City, Utah, peeks over the red rock cliffs during the 23nd Annual Red Rock Balloon Rally at Red Rock State Park December 6, 2003 near Gallup, New Mexico. (Photo By Douglas Tesner/Getty Images)

National Geographic has created “Air, Land & Sea: the 50 greatest wildlife photographs” exhibition. Here: CT4 Crocodile cave on the Salamat river. Set up with Nathan Williamson last chip rain came while we were with the nomads. (Photo by Michael Nichols/National Geographic)

While most people head for cover at the first sign of a storm, this man runs straight toward it. Storm chaser and father of three Mike Olbinski is addicted to photographing extreme weather and regularly takes on tornadoes and supercell thunderstorms in a bid to capture extraordinary images. The photographer, from Phoenix, often travels hundreds of miles a day to reach the eye of a storm. He first became hooked on the unusual hobby almost a decade ago, following the birth of his daughter. Here: A stunning monsoon sunset coupled with intense lightning creating an amazing scene on August 26, 2017. (Photo by Mike Olbinski/Caters News Agency)

Cherry blossoms are in bloom along the Tidal Basin in Washington,DC on March 24, 2016. (Photo by Marc-Antoine Baudoux/AFP Photo)