A Minimal Time-Reconstruction Correction and Its Impact on Cosmological Data Consistency

This manuscript examines whether a minimal, General-Relativity-preserving correction applied at the level of time reconstruction can improve the internal consistency of late-time cosmological datasets. The correction leaves Einstein’s equations unchanged, introduces no new physical fields, and affects observables only through a controlled projection effect entering at quadratic order. The numerical inference framework is first validated through a baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO)-only compatibility test based on DESI DR2 measurements. A global consistency analysis is then presented, combining 1749 measurements from cosmic chronometers, baryon acoustic oscillations, and Type Ia supernovae using identical datasets and numerical pipelines. The manuscript also summarizes qualitative, falsifiable observational signatures—independent of numerical fitting—that distinguish the reconstruction framework from standard cosmological inference.