EVER wonder why the red planet is red? About 180 million years ago, a planet-shattering yet naturally occurring nuclear reaction may have wiped out everything on Mars, sending a shockwave that turned the planet into dry sand. Even more incredible: A natural nuclear reaction could have occurred on our own planet - and could happen again, said Dr John Brandenburg, a senior propulsion scientist at Orbital Technologies Corp. The Martian surface is covered with a thin layer of radioactive substances including uranium, thorium and radioactive potassium - and this pattern radiates from a hot spot [on Mars], Brandenburg told FoxNews.com. A nuclear explosion could have sent debris all around the planet, he said. Maps of gamma rays on Mars show a big red spot that seems like a radiating debris pattern ... on the opposite side of the planet there is another red spot. According to Brandenburg, the natural explosion, the equivalent of 1 million one-megaton hydrogen bombs, occurred in the northern Mare Acidalium region of Mars where there is a heavy concentration of radioactivity. This explosion filled the Martian atmosphere with radio-isotopes as well, which are seen in recent gamma ray spectrometry data taken by NASA, he said. The radioactivity also explains why the planet looks red. Brandenburg said gamma ray spectrometry taken over the past few years shows spiking radiation from Xenon 129 - an increase also seen on Earth after a nuclear reaction or a nuclear meltdown, including the one at Chernobyl in 1986 and the disaster in Japan earlier this month. Dr. David Beaty, Mars program science manager at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory, told FoxNews.com that he finds the idea intriguing and fascinating. But to prove the science, the agency would need to plan a mission to explore Mare Acidalium on Mars. Fox News