This paper formalises a structural limitation inherent in observational systems: the non-uniqueness of temporal reconstruction from spatially observed structure. Using the Paton System framework, it is shown that recursive formation embeds lineage within structure, but projection into an observational frame compresses multiple admissible histories into a single observable configuration. A core datum line, defined by the relationship between observable history (~13.8 billion years) and present comoving extent (~46 billion light-years), anchors observation within this structure. The observable region is radially defined relative to the local datum but does not imply a global centre. The result is a constraint on reverse inference: time is not absent, but compressed into form.
Andrew John Paton (2026) studied this question.