SPECTROSCOPY OF THE QSO PAIR PKS 0254-334

The radio QSO PKS 0254-334/R with zem=1.9130 is located 60 arcsec from the radio-quiet QSO 0254-334/2 with zem = 1.8640. Spectroscopy with a resolution of ~ 2Å has identified nine absorption-line systems in 0254-334/2 four definite, four probable and one possible. The La absorption line is extraordinarily weak relative to the heavy-element lines in three of these systems, implying that hydrogen is almost absent or nearly totally ionized. Absorption by MgII at a common redshift of about 0.213 is possibly present in both members of the QSO pair although their separation is unusually large. This absorption may be caused by two separate galaxies in a cluster or by a single cloud of gas covering both QSOS. Royal Astronomical Society.