Early Dust Formation and a Massive Progenitor for SN 2011ja?
  SN 2011ja was a bright (I = -18.3) Type II supernova occurring in the nearby
edge on spiral galaxy NGC 4945. Flat-topped and multi-peaked H-alpha and H-beta
spectral emission lines appear between 64 - 84 days post-explosion, indicating
interaction with a disc-like circumstellar medium inclined 30-45 degrees from
edge-on. After day 84 an increase in the H- and K-band flux along with heavy
attenuation of the red wing of the emission lines are strong indications of
early dust formation, likely located in the cool dense shell created between
the forward shock of the SN ejecta and the reverse shock created as the ejecta
plows into the existing CSM. Radiative transfer modeling reveals both ~1.5 x
10^-4 Msun of pre-existing dust located ~ 10^16.7 cm away and ~ 5 x 10^-5 Msun
of newly formed dust. Spectral observations after 1.5 years reveal the
possibility that the fading SN is located within a young (3-6 Myr) massive
stellar cluster, which when combined with tentative 56Ni mass estimates of 0.2
Msun may indicate a massive (> 25 Msun) progenitor for SN 2011ja.
