The Missing Large-Angle Correlation: Computing S1/2 from a Sachs-Wolfe Spectrum and Placing the Observed Deficit on a Cosmic-Variance Scale
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: The two-point correlation function of the microwave sky nearly vanishes at separations above sixty degrees, a feature summarised by the statistic S1/2, whose observed value near 1300 microK to the fourth power sits far below ensemble expectations. This paper recomputes the statistic from stated spectra rather than quoting it: a scale-invariant Sachs-Wolfe plateau yields S1/2 of 50688.0 microK to the fourth, and Monte Carlo over the multipole sampling distribution places the observed value at the 0.032 percentile of the plateau ensemble. Imposing a smooth large-angle suppression step centred at multipole 4 reduces the predicted statistic to 1407.0, within reach of the observation. The deficit is therefore real arithmetic, not a plotting impression, and it is specifically a deficit of the lowest few multipoles, which is why it coexists with a normal-looking spectrum at smaller angles. Any explanation must remove large-angle correlation while leaving the acoustic regime untouched, a requirement this computation makes quantitative. The study is computed, not measured.
Author: Aldred, William Alexander
Language: English
Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7225832745
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