The Eye's of Markarian
Two galaxies separated by 100,000 light years, similar to our own dwarf galaxies LMC,SMC but not so long ago may have been as close as 16,000 light years, and as a result the tidal interactions between the two galaxies has stripped the smaller of dust, gas and stars, while leaving a stretched out and wound arm around the larger, and huge areas of dust and gas and star formation.
The two galaxies make up part of the Markarian chain, a string of mostly unconnected galaxies in the Virgo supercluster, and many far beyond, and commonly thought of as the Eyes of of the chain.
It is thought that 7 of the galaxies are not so far apart, while the others just happen be in the way.
















