Non-Gaussian Fluctuations and the Correlations of Galaxies or Rich Clusters of Galaxies

Natural primordial mass density fluctuations are those for which the probability distribution, for mass density fluctuations averaged over the horizon volume, is independent of time. This criterion determines that the two-point correlation of mass density fluctuations has a Zeldovich power spectrum but allows for many types of reduced (connected) higher correlations. Assuming galaxies or rich clusters of galaxies arise wherever suitably averaged natural mass density fluctuations are unusually large, it is shown that the two-point correlation of galaxies or rich clusters of galaxies can have significantly more power at small wavenumbers than the Zeldovich spectrum. This behavior is caused by the non-Gaussian part of the probability distribution for the primordial mass density fluctuations.