Counting Pairs of Faint Galaxies

The number of pairs of galaxies observed to faint magnitude limits, when compared to nearby samples, determines the interaction or merger rate as a function of redshift. The prevalence of mergers at intermediate redshifts is fundamental to understanding how galaxies evolve and the relative population of galaxy types. In a recent HST study of faint radio galaxy fields (Burkey et al. 1994), a pair membership of 34+/-9 % was observed for galaxies with I=18.5-23. Using CFHT deep (I<=24) imaging of a `blank' field we find a significantly lower pair fraction using the same criteria and approach as Burkey et al. This suggests that interactions of faint galaxies may not be as important a factor as originally thought. The colors and morphologies of our close pairs are discussed and we attempt to measure the pair fraction as a function of magnitude.