OBSERVATIONS OF A TIDAL TAIL IN THE INTERACTING GALAXIES NGC-4485 4490/

NGC 4485 and NGC 4490 are closely interacting spiral galaxies in the N GC 4631 Group, separated by a projected distance of 7.7 kpc. Images in the B and I bands were obtained with the Burrell Schmidt telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory in order to study star-forming regions in their tidal features, including a previously undetected faint tail whose color matches that of the outer disk in NGC 4490. A comparison of the tidal morphology with published simulations suggests that this is a prograde encounter with perigalacticon about 4 x 10(8) yr ago. Th is time is approximately the age of the youngest regions in the tail, based on a comparison of observed B-I colors with evolutionary models. Calculations of the Q instability parameter using a rotation curve de rived from published H I observations support the conclusion that the tail is currently stable against star formation.