San Rafael Glacier. People in a small boat (lower right) approaching the terminus of the San Rafael Glacier, where the glacier reaches the sea. This glacier is one of the largest in the Northern Patagonian Icefield in Chile. It is a tidewater glacier (one that empties directly into the sea), and is the closest tidewater glacier to the equator. At the terminus of this glacier, ice is pushed out over the sea, forming the unstable mass of ice seen here. This mass of ice will eventually collapse under its own weight to form icebergs.