NEW YORK — The most expensive dinosaur fossil ever discovered will be on view in New York starting this weekend, American Museum of Natural History officials announced Wednesday.

The giant stegosaurus fossil, dubbed “Apex,” is 11 feet (3.3 meters) tall and 27 feet (8.2 meters) nose to tail. The display will start in a giant atrium at the museum’s entrance before being moved to the museum’s existing fossil halls next year.

The museum also confirmed the identity of the philanthropist who purchased Apex. Billionaire hedge fund manager and longtime museum donor Ken Griffin bought it at an auction in July for $45 million, the most ever paid for dinosaur remains. Sean Decatur, president of the American Museum of Natural History, said that Griffin approved a long-term loan of Apex, as well as allowing scientists to take samples from the fossil for analysis.

“This partnership allows Apex to have pride of place at a museum world-renowned for its dinosaur collection and for its longstanding leadership in paleontology and, even more exciting, enables us to pursue specialized Stegosaurus research centered around this extraordinary and scientifically important specimen,” Decatur said in a statement Wednesday.

Of the more than 80 stegosauri made available to scientific institutions, very few are substantially complete, the statement said. Apex is the most complete specimen ever found, Decatur said. With about 80% of its 320 bones preserved, it is miraculous for creature that has been dead for 150 million years. The specimen is also prized by scientists because it is estimated to have died at a relatively old age, and it could reveal insights into stegosaurus metabolism and bone growth.

Scientists will make CT scans of the internal structures of the dinosaur’s skull and analyze a small sample extracted from one of its giant thigh bones, the statement said.

“As exciting as is it is to have this dinosaur on display, it is even more exciting to have the opportunity to study it and make important scientific data available for research,” said Roger Benson, who curates the American Museum of Natural History’s fossil amphibians, reptiles, birds and plants.

The museum’s paleontologists have a long record of breaking ground in dinosaur research, including identifying the first dinosaur eggs and early evidence of dinosaur feathers, the statement said.

Commercial paleontologist Jason Cooper discovered in Apex on his land near Dinosaur, Colorado, on the Utah border near Dinosaur National Monument.

Griffin’s successful $44.6 million bid for Apex over the summer set a record for dinosaur remains, beating out the $31.8 million paid for “Stan,” the remains of a Tyrannosaurus rex sold in 2020. Like Apex, the Stan fossils were purchased by a private individual with plans to make it available to the public. The T. rex has been slated to be on display in Abu Dhabi, in United Arab Emirates, at a museum that opens in late 2025.

UnitedHealth Group, has released a statement saying their “hearts are broken” and that they have been “touched by the huge outpouring of kindness and support” since CEO Brian Thompson was gunned down in Manhattan early Wednesday.

The masked gunman appeared to be lying in wait outside the Hilton hotel in what police said was a “premeditated” attack. The shooter arrived at the scene about five minutes before Thompson before shooting the victim in the chest around 6:40 a.m., police said.

Video captured the moment the gunman walked up behind the CEO, pointed his gun at him and fired. A witness fled as Thompson stumbled and fell to the ground. The gunman then walked closer to Thompson, firing more times before fleeing.

“So many patients, consumers, health care professionals, associations, government officials and other caring people have taken time out of their day to reach out. We are thankful, even as we grieve,” UnitedHealth Group, parent company of the division Thompson was CEO of — UnitedHealthcare — said in their latest statement. “Our priorities are, first and foremost, supporting Brian’s family; ensuring the safety of our employees; and working with law enforcement to bring the perpetrator to justice.”

“We, at UnitedHealth Group, will continue to be there for those who depend upon us for their health care,” the statement continued. “We ask that everyone respect the family’s privacy as they mourn the loss of their husband, father, brother and friend.”

The killer of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson entered New York by bus Nov. 24, when a surveillance camera at Port Authority Bus Terminal caught his arrival at 9 p.m., law enforcement sources told ABC News.

Police are investigating whether the suspect left the city by bus the day of the shooting on Dec. 4.

The inbound bus originated in Atlanta but it was not immediately clear where the suspected boarded.

The 10 day period is the focus of investigative efforts as police have collected a lot of video of the suspect all over the city — in the subway, in cabs and even in a McDonald’s. Each place he paid with cash and he made sure to keep his mask on, which indicates to detectives he knew he was coming to the city to commit the murder.

The suspect likely checked into the hostel at 103/Amsterdam on the Nov. 24, checked out and then checked back in again on Nov. 30. It’s not clear when the surveillance image was captured.

The NYPD released new photos of the suspect, seen without a mask, on Thursday, while asking for the public’s help in identifying him. The images were taken from a surveillance camera at the HI New York City Hostel on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Police had obtained a warrant to search after coming to believe the suspect stayed there, sources told ABC News.

Police were able to find an image of the suspect without his face mask because of an exchange in which the shooter obliged the desk clerk’s request to show his face occurred because the desk clerk is required to match a guest’s face with a photo ID, police sources told ABC News.

As he stood at the check-in desk, the sources said the woman asked to see his smile. The suspected shooter obliged, pulling down his mask long enough for the surveillance camera to capture his face.

The suspected shooter checked into the hostel using a New Jersey license that wasn’t his own, police sources told ABC News. Detectives ran the name and found it did not resemble any known photos of the suspect or other evidence amassed so far, the sources said.

His check-in date was Nov. 30, but officials believe that the suspected shooter was in the city prior to that date.

Law enforcement sources told ABC News that he arrived last month from Atlanta, Georgia. He took a Greyhound bus into Port Authority Terminal in Midtown.

Both Greyhound and the parent company of the hostel, Hostelling International USA, said in a statement that they are “fully cooperating with the NYPD” but cannot comment further due to the active investigation.

Detectives are currently canvassing other hostels and locations on the Upper West Side and beyond, showing the suspect’s picture as they work to identify him, sources said.

They are working to learn more about the man’s whereabouts in the time between his arrival to New York City and the shooting incident.

Thompson was a longtime executive whose rise at the company came after a stint as a business advisor at global consulting giant PwC, according to his LinkedIn page.

He lived in a non-gated neighborhood in Maple Grove, Minnesota, a Twin Cities suburb, roughly 15 miles away from UnitedHealth Group’s Minnetonka headquarters.

After occupying various executive roles at the company for nearly 20 years, Thompson was appointed to his current position in 2021.

Thompson’s wife, Paulette Thompson, said in a statement that she’s “shattered” by the “senseless killing.”

“Brian was an incredibly loving, generous, talented man who truly lived life to the fullest and touched so many lives,” she said. “Most importantly, Brian was an incredibly loving father to our two sons and will be greatly missed.”

WASHINGTON — As he presided over his final Christmas tree lighting at the White House, President Joe Biden on Thursday said his wish for the nation now, and always, was that “we continue to seek the light of liberty and love, kindness and compassion, dignity and decency.”

Biden spoke briefly to the crowd who were decked out in heavy winter layers as frigid winds and chilly temperatures hit the nation’s capital. Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff, were also in attendance. The tree has been set up on the Ellipse outside the White House South Lawn, and it’s visible on the streets.

The 30-foot red spruce tree came from Mount Rogers National Recreation Area in Grayson County, Virginia. It was transferred to the White House on Nov. 15.

It’s the final holiday stretch for Biden. His wife, Jill, has decked out the White House with whimsical decorations to evoke the “peace and light” of the season. She missed the lighting this year because she was in Doha, Qatar, where she was discussing her initiative on women’s health.

So Biden did the honors himself, counting down from five before the tree light up a cheery bright green from the tip-top to the bottom of the trunk. He wished the crowd a Merry Christmas before stepping down to take his seat for musical performances.

Biden said the theme reflects the “peace we feel as we pause and reflect our on blessings and the light we see as we gather with loved ones and cherish our time together.”

The tree lighting ceremony is an annual tradition. On Thursday, Trombone Shorty and Trisha Yearwood were among the performers.

The White House Christmas display includes a towering tree surrounded by an amusement park-style carousel, brass-colored bells and sleigh bells lining a hallway, and a ceiling design that mimics snowfall.

That tree came from a farm in Newland, North Carolina, where Hurricane Helene struck earlier this year. The Cartner’s Christmas Tree Farm, which had stood for decades, lost thousands of trees to a mudslide.