"The book discusses how stars generate their energy through nuclear reactions, and how elements are created in stars and during the big bang. The theory of thermonuclear reactions rates and their relevance for cosmology and stellar evolution are discussed in detail. Whenever possible, the book introduces the cosmological and astrophysical concepts necessary to understand the physics context of nuclear reactions and structure theory, thermonuclear reaction rate formalism and stellar nucleosynthesis. The book discusses the topics in a self-contained way and has several end-of-chapter exercises. It can be used as a reference book for researchers working in the field of nuclear astrophysics."--Provided by publisher.