The following pages of this final thesis serve to get the reader acquainted with theories regarding the origin of chemical elements that make up the material world we as people navigate and bear witness to in every moment of our existence. Beginning at the very basics of astrophysics, the paper will display and elaborate on the processes that preeceded the universe as we know it, as well as the processes taking place in the present moment, that are deemed responsible for incredible diversity experienced either by looking through the telescope or gazing into the microscopic world via sophisticated electronic microscopes. We call this process stellar nucleogenesis – the forming of elements within a star nucleus during nuclear fusion. Nuclear fusion, therefore, describes the formation of heavier atomic nuclei from lighter ones, and will be further explored in detail in paragraphs that follow. A significant focus of this paper will be dedicated to portraying the mechanisms that made possible the formation of heavy elements; those possessing higher atomic numbers. The problem arises naturally in regards to the exact meaning of "heavy". While some scientific circles only attribute those elements with atomic numbers of 92 and above as heavy, others consider heavy elements to possess the atomic number greater than that of iron. This final thesis, hence, considers the second definition; heavy elements will be regarded as elements heavier than iron.