Most elements are synthesized, or &quot;cooked&quot;, by thermonuclear reactions in stars. The newly formed<br>elements are released into the interstellar medium during a star's lifetime, and are subsequently<br>incorporated into a new generation of stars, into the planets that form around the stars, and into the life<br>forms that originate on the planets. Moreover, the energy we depend on for life originates from nuclear<br>reactions that occur at the center of the Sun. Synthesis of the elements and nuclear energy production<br>in stars are the topics of nuclear astrophysics, which is the subject of this book. It presents nuclear<br>structure and reactions, thermonuclear reaction rates, experimental nuclear methods, and nucleosynthesis<br>in detail. These topics are discussed in a coherent way, enabling the reader to grasp their interconnections<br>intuitively. The book serves both as a textbook for advanced undergraduate and graduate students, with<br>worked examples and end-of-chapter excercises, but also as a reference book for use by researchers<br>working in the field of nuclear astrophysics.<br>