Hydrodynamic simulations of the central 30x30 kpc of a major galaxy merger (Renaud+15) at snapshots from before first passage to between the first and second passage. Middle Panel: The velocity dispersion of the molecular ISM as a function of time (t=0 is first pericenter passage), with a resolution of 24 pc/cell. The horizontal solid line is the derived lower-limit in simulations of galaxies at high-redshift (Renaud+22). The solid red curve plots the fraction of the ISM molecular gas in a compressive mode. It is this mode of turbulence which sets mid-stage galaxy mergers apart from their pre-merger (PHANGS - Leroy+21) or post-coalescence (PUMA - Perna+22) counterparts. Only mid-stage mergers have an appreciable fraction of their ISM in a compressive mode; conditions which are analogous to high-redshift star-forming galaxies. Lower Left Panels: HST optical and narrow-band Pa-beta images of a proposed target, Arp 256, demonstrating that the existing Pa-beta observations can isolate star-forming clumps and clusters throughout the nuclei, disks, and extended tidal tails. Lower Right Panel: ALMA CO (2-1) observations of NGC 3256 at 0.2" ~ 50 pc resolution (Brunetti+21), which serves as an example for the expected data products in our mid-stage LIRG sample.