This GRB was detected by the Swift satellite on February 18, 2006, and its name is derived from the date.

GRB 060218's duration (almost 2000 seconds) and its origin in a galaxy 440 million light years away are far longer and closer, respectively, than typical gamma-ray bursts seen before, and the burst was also considerably dimmer than average despite its close distance.

However, an optical afterglow to the gamma-ray burst has been detected and is brightening, and some scientists believe that the appearance of a supernova (SN 2006aj) may be ongoing.

[needs update] Four different groups of researchers, led by Sergio Campana, Elena Pian, Alicia Soderberg and Paolo Mazzali respectively, carried out the investigation of the phenomenon and presented their results in Nature on August 31, 2006.

The exploding star is believed to have had the boundary mass (about 20 Solar masses) for supernovae to leave either a black hole or a neutron star after its explosion.