  We review Gordon's optical metric and the transport equations for the
amplitude and polarization of a geometrical optics wave traveling in a gravity
field. We apply the theory to the FLRW cosmologies by associating a refraction
index with the cosmic fluid. We then derive an expression for the accumulated
effect of a refraction index on the distance redshift relations and fit the
Hubble curve of current supernova observations with a non-accelerating
cosmological model. We also show that some observational effects caused by
inhomogeneities, e.g. the Sachs-Wolfe effect, can be interpreted as being
caused by an effective index of refraction, and hence this theory could extend
to other speed of light communications such as gravitational radiation and
neutrino fluxes.
