GENERAL RELATIVITY AND ITS APPLICATIONS : black holes, compact stars and gravitational waves.

"Containing the latest, groundbreaking discoveries in the field, this text outlines the basics of Einstein's theory of gravity with a focus on its most important astrophysical consequences, including stellar structures, black holes and the physics of gravitational waves. Blending advanced topics - usually not found in introductory textbooks - with examples, pedagogical boxes, mathematical tools and practical applications of the theory, this textbook maximises learning opportunities and is ideal for master and graduate students in Physics and Astronomy. Key features: Provides a self-contained and consistent treatment of the subject that does not require advanced previous knowledge of the field. Explores the subject with a new focus on gravitational waves and astrophysical relativity, unlike current introductory textbooks. Fully up-to-date, containing the latest developments and discoveries in the field"-- Provided by publisher 1 Introduction2 Elements of Differential Geometry3 Affine Connection and Parallel Transport4 The Curvature Tensor5 The Stressenergy Tensor6 The Einstein Equations7 Einstein's Equations and Variational Principles8 Symmetries9 The Schwarzschild Spacetime10 Geodesic Motion in Schwarzschild's Spacetime11 Kinematical Tests of General Relativity12 Gravitational Waves.13 Gravitational Waves in the Quadrupole Approximation14 Gravitational Wave Sources15 Gravitational Waves from Oscillating Black Holes16 Compact Stars17 The Farfield Limit of an Isolated, Stationary Object18 The Kerr Solution19 Geodesic Motion in Kerr's Spacetime20 Black Hole Thermodynamics