The Northern Patagonian Ice Field, located in southern Chile

Chile

Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

, is the smaller of two remnant parts in which the Patagonian Ice Sheet

Patagonian Ice Sheet

350px|thumb|right|Map showing the extent of the Patagonian Ice Sheet in the [[Strait of Magellan]] area during the [[last glacial period]]. Selected modern settlements are shown with yellow dots...

 in the Andes Mountains of lower South America

South America

South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

 can be divided. It is completely contained within the boundaries of Laguna San Rafael National Park

Laguna San Rafael National Park

Laguna San Rafael National Park is a park located on the Pacific coast of southern Chile. The park is named for the San Rafael Lagoon formed by the retreat of the San Rafael Glacier. Created in 1959, it covers an area of and includes the Northern Patagonian Ice Field...

. The Northern Patagonian Ice Field is a vestige of the Patagonian Ice Sheet

Patagonian Ice Sheet

350px|thumb|right|Map showing the extent of the Patagonian Ice Sheet in the [[Strait of Magellan]] area during the [[last glacial period]]. Selected modern settlements are shown with yellow dots...

, an extensive ice sheet

Ice sheet

An ice sheet is a mass of glacier ice that covers surrounding terrain and is greater than 50,000 km² , thus also known as continental glacier...

 that covered all of Chilean Patagonia

Patagonia

Patagonia is a region located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the southwest towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean...

 and the westernmost parts of Argentine Patagonia during the Quaternary glaciation

Quaternary glaciation

Quaternary glaciation, also known as the Pleistocene glaciation, the current ice age or simply the ice age, refers to the period of the last few million years in which permanent ice sheets were established in Antarctica and perhaps Greenland, and fluctuating ice sheets have occurred elsewhere...

s. Today, with its glacier

Glacier

A glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...

s largely in retreat and only an area of 4200 km² (1,621.6 sq mi), it is still the second largest continuous mass of ice outside of the polar regions. Survival is based on its elevation (1100 metre), favorable terrain and a cool, moist, marine climate. The ice field has 28 exit glaciers, the largest two — San Quintin

San Quintín Glacier

The San Quintín Glacier is the largest outflow glacier of the Northern Patagonian Ice Field in southern Chile. Its terminus is a piedmont lobe just short of the Gulf of Penas on the Pacific Ocean and just north of 47°S.-Recent retreat:...

 and San Rafael

San Rafael Glacier

The San Rafael Glacier is one of the major outlet glaciers of the Northern Patagonian Ice Field in southern Chile and is the tidewater glacier nearest the equator. It calves into the Laguna San Rafael and is contained within Laguna San Rafael National Park....

 — nearly reach sea level to the west at the Pacific Ocean

Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...

. Smaller exit glaciers, like San Valentin and Nef

Nef Glacier

Nef Glacier is a glacier located in Laguna San Rafael National Park, in the Aisén Region of Chile. It trends southeast from Cerro Largo to its terminus in the lake that shared its name....

, feed numerous rivers and glacially carved lakes to the east.