Google has agreed to buy Skybox Imaging, a provider of high-quality satellite images, for $500 million in cash.

By purchasing the 5-year-old Skybox, Google will initially gain a way to improve its mapping service.

But over time, the company said that it hoped its newest acquisition - which launches satellites into space as part of its business - can help bolster both its Internet service offerings and its disaster relief efforts.

Google has already been working on sometimes novel ways to expand its Internet access, including through balloons and drones.

“The time is right to join a company who can challenge us to think even bigger and bolder, and who can support us in accelerating our ambitious vision,” Skybox wrote in a corporate blog post.

The deal is the 16th by Google so far this year, according to Standard & Poor’s Capital IQ.

NYT