Interacting binary galaxies. III. Observations of NGC 1587/1588 and NGC 7236/7237

The catalog of isolated galaxy pairs prepared by Karachentsev has been culled for its E-E constituents, and the results are reported. Radial variations of rotation velocity and velocity dispersion are extracted from the spectroscopic data for each of the two galaxies of a given pair. Such observations are described for two Karachentsev pairs, Nos. 99 and 564. The observed disturbances in rotation velocity and luminosity distribution are discussed in terms of the gravitational interaction hypothesis. It is argued that observational evidence of tidal friction in action is evidenced by these findings. One of the highest rotation rates known for an E2 galaxy of average luminosity is found in NGC 1587, the brighter component of K99. Because this rotation is in the same sense as the binary orbital motion, the net angular momentum in this isolated binary system is large, challenging simple tidal torque theories to identify the source of the momentum. 62 references