XTable translated iceberg table (from hudi) is failing SHOW CREATE TABLE <table_name>

The error you're encountering with the SHOW CREATE TABLE command on your Iceberg table translated from Hudi using Apache XTable is likely due to an issue with reproducing the table structure. This can happen when Athena is unable to generate the CREATE TABLE statement for Iceberg tables that have certain unsupported properties or metadata.

Instead of using SHOW CREATE TABLE, you can try using the DESCRIBE FORMATTED command to view the table properties and structure. This alternative approach often works when SHOW CREATE TABLE fails for Iceberg tables.

The error message you're seeing (NullPointerException) suggests that there might be some missing or null metadata in the translated table structure. This could be a result of the translation process from Hudi to Iceberg format using XTable.

To troubleshoot further:

1. Verify that all necessary metadata was properly translated during the XTable process.
2. Ensure that the table properties are compatible with Athena's supported Iceberg features.
3. Check if there are any unsupported table properties that might have been carried over from the original Hudi table.

If the issue persists, you may need to review the XTable translation process and ensure that all required Iceberg metadata is properly generated and stored. In some cases, you might need to manually adjust the table properties or metadata to make it fully compatible with Athena's Iceberg implementation.
Sources
Troubleshoot Athena Apache Iceberg table errors | AWS re:Post
Run Apache XTable on Amazon MWAA to translate open table formats | AWS Big Data Blog