"Hubble Space Telescope Spots Collision Course with LINER"

The Hubble Space Telescope captured an image of two galaxies, NGC 3558 and LEDA 83465, which are close neighbors in the galactic cluster Abell 1185. NGC 3558 is a LINER, a galactic nucleus emitting weakly ionized or non-ionized light, likely formed by devouring smaller galaxies in the cluster. The interaction between galaxies in Abell 1185 can lead to dramatic results, but NGC 3558 has retained its integrity so far. The mechanism behind the weak ionization in LINERs is still debated among astronomers.