The nanowires seen here are synthesized with nickel using an electro-deposition method that causes them to grow (much like grass in the springtime). Such nanowires hold promise as key components of environment and health sensors and energy-scavenging devices. This image was taken with an Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope, which allows us to see nanostructures in their native state with extraordinary three-dimensional clarity. ESEM images are originally black and white. But colors can be added subsequently by assigning a given color to a specific gray scale. The colorization can yield important information about a material that may not be evident in the original black-and-white image. Field of view: 20 microns.