This book, now in an expanded and revised second edition, starts by introducing fundamental astronomical concepts and goes on to present a clear yet comprehensive exploration of stellar structure and evolution, binary interactions, and dynamical systems. Notably, it includes an up-to-date discussion of pair-instability supernovae and provides an overview of gravitational wave emission and their detection using binary systems, highlighting the landmark 2015 discovery of gravitational waves in the merger of black hole binaries by LIGO.

The book is organized into four parts. Part I introduces stellar properties and the classification of binary systems. Part II covers the processes of stellar evolution and radiative transfer. Part III focuses on the development and application of stellar models. Part IV examines the evolution of compact binary systems. The book provides a brief introduction to gravitational radiation from binary systems and their observational techniques. 

Through detailed explanations, derivations of key concepts, and worked examples, readers will gain a strong understanding of the astrophysics of compact binary populations, and obtain a foundation for further study in specialized areas of stellar astrophysics. No prior knowledge of astronomy is required, though familiarity with undergraduate-level quantum mechanics, classical mechanics, and thermodynamics is recommended.

This updated edition is an essential resource for upper-level undergraduate and first-year graduate students in physics.

Matthew Benacquista received his Bachelor's degree in physics from Reed College and a PhD in physics from Montana State University. He has over 100 publications in gravitational physics and gravitational wave astronomy. He has authored a textbook in Classical Mechanics and the first edition of An Introduction to the Evolution of Single and Binary Stars. He has been a member of the LIGO Scientific Collaboration and the LISA Science Team. After 28 years of teaching, he served for 5 years as a program director in the Division of Astronomy at the US National Science Foundation, and is now retired and living in Montana. He is professor emeritus of physics at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley