Use the flat matter-only Einstein-de Sitter approximation for the distance-redshift relation, neglecting radiation corrections at cosmological recombination. Let be the cosmological recombination redshift. Adiabatic photon cooling gives . The Hubble rate is , so the comoving radial distance to last scattering is
The angular diameter distance is . A proper Hubble radius therefore subtends the small angle
This is the angular Hubble-radius scale in an Einstein-de Sitter universe; the present Hubble constant cancels.
Taking and the literal printed gives and radians, or degrees. As noted above, that present CMB energy is too large by ten. With the corrected , and
which gives the familiar order-one-degree scale within the assumed cosmology. Using to mark a few-per-cent ionization fraction changes this only modestly. These numbers refer to the Hubble-radius scale, not its diameter. In a matter-only universe the particle-horizon radius is and would give twice the angle; the acoustic sound horizon is a different length again.