Science with an ngVLA: Radio Continuum Emission from Galaxies: An
  Accounting of Energetic Processes
  Radio continuum observations have proven to be a workhorse in our
understanding of the star formation process (i.e., stellar birth and death)
from galaxies both in the nearby universe and out to the highest redshifts. In
this article we focus on how the ngVLA will transform our understanding of star
formation by enabling one to map and decompose the radio continuum emission
from large, heterogeneous samples of nearby galaxies on $\gtrsim 10$\,pc scales
to conduct a proper accounting of the energetic processes powering it. At the
discussed sensitivity and angular resolution, the ngVLA will simultaneously be
able to create maps of current star formation activity at $\sim$100\,pc scales,
as well as detect and characterize (e.g., size, spectral shape, density, etc.)
discrete H{\sc ii} regions and supernova remnants on 10\,pc scales in galaxies
out to the distance of the Virgo cluster. Their properties can then be used to
see how they relate to the local and global ISM and star formation conditions.
Such investigations are essential for understanding the astrophysics of
high-$z$ measurements of galaxies, allowing for proper modeling of galaxy
formation and evolution.
