An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics
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The maximum distance a → sound wave could have traveled through the ionized plasma from the → Big Bang until the → recombination era. It is 150 → Mpc, or bout 500 million → light-years. Sound horizon is the equivalent of the concept of → cosmic horizon, where one replaces → electromagnetic wave by → sound wave. The sound horizon is a fixed physical scale at the → last scattering surface. Cosmological models relate the value of sound horizon to the angle it subtends on the sky today. Same as acoustic horizon and sonic horizon. See also → CMB angular power spectrum.

→ sound; → horizon.