that we are witnessing two galaxies merge into one.
This optical image offers only circumstantial evidence that 3C 75 is a merging galaxy. Since it lies at the heart of a cluster, where galaxies are often close to one another, it is possible that 3C 75 consists of two galaxies, one simply in front of the other. Yet the galaxiesΓÇÖ close proximity also suggests that they may have become entangled. And 3C 75ΓÇÖs fainter diskΓÇöthe fuzzy blue region in this imageΓÇödoes not indicate separate structures. If the image merely documents the chance alignment of galaxies, the two would have to be oriented on almost exactly the same plane. Still, optical observations alone are not likely to solve the mystery, since 3C
