In December a specially designed 1.4 billion pixel (gigapixel) camera began scanning the night sky to protect humanity from possible Earth-bound asteroids and comets. The Pan-STARRS cameras, built with chips designed by MIT Lincoln Laboratory, is part of a prototype telescope installed in an observatory on Maui's Haleakala Mountain. Its high resolution will improve scientists' ability to detect asteroids and comets by a factor of five. "This is a truly giant instrument," University of Hawaii astronomer John Tonry told the MIT News Service. "We get an image that is 38,000 by 38,000 pixels

Our photo contributor Jacky Parker has taken top honours in the RHS Photographic Competition 2008, sponsored by Medici, and was named RHS Photographer of the Year, winning first prize in the Plant Portrait Category. Jacky's striking image of Rudbeckia hirta 'Marmalade', was selected from over 4,500 entries, from across the UK and around the world. Click the winning image above to go through to the image page on Fotoviva. This year’s judges included renowned garden photographer, Tim Sandall, Deputy Editor of The Garden, Chris Young and television gardener and lecturer, Matt James.As