Taken in November 1949, this photograph shows a Project Skyhook balloon being prepared for launch aboard USS Palau (CVE-122). Project Skyhook involved the use of polyethylene balloons carrying instrument packages to altitudes in excess of 100,000 feet (30,480+ meters); these balloons provided a stable vehicle for long duration observations and offered the opportunity of collecting highly specialized information and photographs.

Planes parked aft belong to Marine Fighter Squadron 212 (VMF-212).

USS Palau (CVE-122) at Pier 7, Norfolk Naval Base, circa 1950.

Master Chief Boatswain's Mate Carl M. Brashear, USN, served aboard Palau, June 1950–November 1951. MCBM Brashear (1931–2006) was a pioneer in the Navy as the first black deep-sea diver, the first black Master Diver and the first Navy diver to be restored to full active duty as an amputee, the result of a leg injury he sustained during a salvage operation in January 1966, off the coast of Spain. His life story was immortalized on the big screen in the movie "Men of Honor" (2000).

USS Palau (CVE-122) underway circa 1950, with Piasecki HRP Flying Bananas tandem-rotor helicopters on board belonging to an experimental Marine Corps squadron.

Official Navy photograph of USS Palau (CVE-122) underway, May 10, 1950. Photo # CVE-122-554-(L)-5-10-50.