Does anyone know what ESA’s plans for the data pipeline for Athena will be? Is it an evolution of SAS? Or some other system, e.g. adapted from more recent missions like SpectrumX/eROSITA?
When I google “Athena software ESA” or similar, I find the current simulation software such as SIXTE. That’s understandable at the current stage of development, but that’s not the info I’m looking for.
I’m asking because I’m thinking about a post-Chandra future in the US and wonder how existing packages like CIAO or SAS will fit in with biggest future X-ray mission that has a very high likelihood of actually happening.