France, June 30 -- Thales Alenia Space, the joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), has been selected by the French space agency CNES, as part of the space component of the France 2030 program launched by the French government, to develop a very-high-throughput laser communications demonstrator.Called SOLiS - for Service Optique de Liaisons Spatiales Securisees (secure optical space link service) - this project aims to demonstrate the technical and economic viability of an optical communications service relying on geostationary satellites.Such a service is designed to make intercontinental networks more resilient at a time when there is a growing number of acts of sabotage targeting land and undersea optical fiber links. Geos...