Any Unknown or Unlisted Aircraft Manufacturer
Air Traffic Control Fully Certified
Air Traffic Control Time Certified In Pos 1 (yrs) 23
Human-Machine Interface; Situational Awareness; Distraction; Confusion
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
Air Traffic Control Issued Advisory / Alert
Equipment / Tooling
A probable equipment issue; my R-side & I both observed a mode-C intruder target appear west of MHZ showing FL360 squawking XYZA.  At first I suspected it was a false target (ring-around) from a radar site; and did a flight plan readout on the code.  The code belonged to Aircraft X who was at FL360; established well outside ZME in ZHU airspace and heading away toward AEX/IAH.  If the target had disappeared after a couple hits; we may have thought little of it.  The target was moving rapidly northeast bound toward MEM; exhibiting a greater airspeed than Aircraft X; and showing good steady radar identification for approximately 35 miles; I was on the D-side; so I'm not sure; but I would estimate the target marched along for about 35 or 40 miles and then disappeared.  During this time; I stood up to view the underlying sector 45 and sector 66 for any possible targets in the same vicinity; but there were none; there was an aircraft just southeast of the target at FL380 and my R-side asked him if he showed anything on his TCAS; the pilot replied negative.  Sector 43 is routinely our busiest sector; if this had happened during a busy session it would have created much confusion and some panic.The target vector was not relative to Aircraft X [and] any radar site; in an example of the old ring-around scenario; Aircraft X would have been 30 SW of the radar site and the false target 30 N of the site; then 30 NNE; 30NE; etc. I do not know where the ADSB antennas are; but if one is near VKS then it may have an impact on the situation.  I think it's important to note that the false target was not moving opposite Aircraft X; it was not a mirror presentation; but I would estimate 150 degrees opposite.  We told the ASIC (Area Supervisor In Charge) when [ASIC] returned to the area and took down information and reported it to someone.  I have not seen this type of event before; and have no idea what caused it.
Controller advised that this is an ongoing problem that has not been fixed. Reporter stated the technicians are seeing that it is along the same route from Vicksburg; MS to Memphis; TN. According to the reporter; the facility has not found out what is causing the problem but are still investigating.
ZME Controller reports of a Mode-C intruder target moving NE towards their airspace at a fast rate. Controllers checked with pilots in the vicinity to see if they saw it on TCAS and they did not. Controller referenced it to something like ring-around but said it was not because the targets did not correlate to ring-around. Controller reported the incident to Front Line Manager (FLM).