Peter Tatum is a PhD Candidate in the Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences Department at CU Boulder. He conducts research at LASP under Dr. David Malaspina, focusing primarily on the role of Kinetic Alfvén Waves as a heating mechanism in turbulent plasmas using observations in the near-sun solar wind by NASA's Parker Solar Probe. Peter is also participating in the development of the Rapid Active Plasma Sounder (RAPS) which will fly on board the Swedish-led SYSTER sounding rocket in October 2025. RAPS will provide measurements of plasma density as a part of the NASA-funded COUSIN suite of instruments (P.I. David Malaspina) designed to measure small scale energy deposition in Earth’s Aurora. Peter earned a B.S. in Engineering Physics at the University of California, Berkeley. During his time at UC Berkeley, he worked with Dr. Shannon Curry at the Space Sciences Laboratory studying atmospheric escape of heavy ions in the Martian magnetotail using observations from the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft. Outside of work, Peter is an avid skier, climber, hiker, and musician.