[11] It was first catalogued by Frank Elmore Ross in 1926 with his second list of proper-motion stars;[12] on which count it ranks 261st in the SIMBAD database.

[14] With high probability, there appears to be a long-term cycle of variability with a period of 4.2 years.

[13] In 1950, this became the first star to have a small variation in magnitude attributed to spots on its photosphere as it rotates,[15] a class known as BY Draconis variables.

[2] Examining the proper motion of Ross 248 has found no evidence of a brown dwarf or stellar companion orbiting between 100–1400 AU,[16] and other unsuccessful searches have been attempted using both the Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Planetary Camera[4] and by near-infrared speckle interferometry.

[17] Long-term observations by the Sproul Observatory show no astrometric perturbations by any unseen companion.