Google Acquires Skybox Imaging For $500 Million - Its Second Major Aerospace Asset in 2014

Internet giant Google Inc on Tuesday announced the acquisition of satellite-making company Skybox Imaging for $500 million, making it the second major acquisition by Google this year in the aerospace domain (first being #-Link-Snipped-#). Google using Skybox's satellites shall better its existing mapping service, and even added that the latter's technology could be employed eventually to offer Internet access and aid in disaster-struck areas.


This is in the same vein as Google's Titan Aerospace acquisition in April, and with Project Loon in the loop, this 5-year-old Skybox's acquisition could facilitate a bigger scheme of things.

Facebook is not lagging far in the race to scale more and more drone and satellite ventures. The world's top social network announced in March its special 'Connectivity Lab Project' that aims to offer Internet to people residing in underdeveloped areas across the world; and to achieve this feat they'll be making use of satellites, drones and other technology capable of beaming Internet at such extremes.

Skybox has built smaller and lighter satellites completely equipped with sensors and high-tech cameras that shoot high-resolution images/videos of the Earth. The company has launched a satellite, and aims to launch a constellation of 24 satellites gradually.