Abstract
Several studies have addressed the topic of spiral interactions in pairs or in small groups (Barnes 1998). However there is no specific study, to our knowledge, of interacting triplets of spirals. Here we present a preliminary report of ongoing research on the dynamics of triplets that includes galaxies of different morphology. In particular we follow a triplet of equal-mass spirals until a merger remnant that resembles an elliptical-like galaxy has been formed.It is known that the HI component of spirals is a good tracer of interactions. Indeed, several triplets (e.g. in M81 group) that do not appear to be perturbed in optical images do so in H I maps. Although a self-consistent treatment of gas requires the inclusion of e.g. pressure forces, we use here a test-particle approach to study it during a triple interaction of spirals; this can yield information about the large-scale kinematical features of gaseous tails.
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