The tale of splitting the atom isn't just about America—it's a journey from New Zealand to Manchester, led by the brilliant mind of Ernest Rutherford, the true father of nuclear physics.

U.S. President Donald Trump's declaration in an inauguration speech that Americans "split the atom" prompted vexed social media posts on Tuesday by New Zealanders, who said the achievement belonged to a pioneering scientist revered in his homeland.

The mayor of a New Zealand city has rubbished an eyebrow-raising claim made by President Donald Trump during his wild inauguration speech.

A small town mayor in New Zealand has picked a nuclear fight with Donald Trump, after the freshly sworn-in US president heaped praise on American scientists for splitting the atom.

The Donald Trump lie that upset New Zealanders the most - Trump gets called out on social media for repeating erroneous claim during inauguration speech

After President Trump's claim, a mayor in New Zealand pointed out that work to split the atom was actually pioneered by physicist Ernest Rutherford.

Mayor Nick Smith said that he would invite the incoming US ambassador to visit the Rutherford memorial in Nelson 'so we can keep the historic record on who split the atom first accurate'.

The president repeated false claims related to the 2020 US election in addition to unfounded allegations against immigration. View on euronews

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Trump's claim that American experts were responsible for this feat has been met with swift correction from New Zealanders, who proudly assert that their native son, Sir Ernest Rutherford, was the true pioneer behind this discovery.