Court clears SpaceX land swap with Texas wildlife refuge as challenges endure

A federal judge in Texas declined to block a land swap that would transfer more than 700 acres of the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge to SpaceX in exchange for SpaceX-owned land, saying plaintiffs failed to prove the move would cause ecological harm; the deal was approved by the Fish and Wildlife Service in June and would place SpaceX land closer to its launch site, but opponents vow to press the case, arguing it harms public lands and habitat, and the injunction would delay SpaceX milestones.