MORPHOLOGY TRANSFORMATION IN PAIRS OF GALAXIES - THE LOCAL SAMPLE

We present photometric analysis of a local sample of 14 isolated pairs of galaxies. The photometric properties analyzed in the local pairs a re: colors, morphology, tidal effects and activity. We verify that clo se pairs have an excess of early-type galaxies and many elliptical gal axies in this pairs are! in fact, lenticular galaxies. Many late-pairs in our sample show strong tidal damage and blue star formation region s. We conclude that pairs of different morphologies may have passed th rough differ ent evolution processes which violently transformed their morphology. Pairs with at least one early-type component may be desce ndents of groups of galaxies. However, late-type pairs are probably lo ng-lived showing clearly signs of interaction. Some of them could be s een as an early stage of mergers. These photometric databases will be used for future comparison with more distant pairs in order to study g alaxy evolution.