On the use of measured time delays in gravitational lenses to determine the Hubble constant

Gravitational lenses are rare in the known samples of quasars, indicating that the conditions involved in their formation are unusual. In particular, the distribution of matter along the light rays from the observer through the deflector to the quasar may be very different from mean conditions. It is shown that reasonable deviations in the density of matter along the beams can significantly alter the relationship between time delays and the Hubble constant, and it is concluded that gravitational lenses are not promising estimators of this constant. However, should an independent, precise determination of the Hubble constant become available, gravitational lenses could be used to probe long-range density fluctuations.