CHEMICAL ABUNDANCES IN THE DAMPED SYSTEM AT Z=3.390 TOWARDS QSO-0000-2619

We present an abundance analysis of the damped Lyman alpha (DLA) syste m seen in the spectrum of the QSO 0000-2619 at z(abs)=3.390. From the inspection of ESO NTT high resolution spectra (FWHM similar or equal t o 12 km s(-1)) we identified with a high degree of confidence lines of N I, O I, Al II, Si II and Fe II, although some of them are spread th rough the Ly alpha forest. By fitting all lines with an automatic proc edure which minimizes the residuals, we have computed b values and col umn densities by taking into account the presence of multiple componen ts in the profiles. The gas phase metal abundances of the system relat ive to the solar value are [Fe/H] = -2.4 +/- 0.16, [Si/H] = -2.5 +/- 0 .19, [Al/H] = -2.8 +/- 0.19, [O/H] = -3.1 +/- 0.17, and [N/H] = -2.8 /- 0.17. These metallicities are among the lowest found in extragalact ic objects. The relative abundances in this DLA are much closer to sol ar than to the ratios typical of the halo or of the thick disk stars o f the Galaxy, suggesting a chemical history different from that of the Milky Way.