A DAZZLING map shows every tropical hurricane, cyclone and typhoon since 1851, as New Orleans battens down the hatches in the face of Tropical Storm Isaac.

The latest creation of information architect John Nelson, who has previously charted earthquakes and tornados, the new map shows a "bottoms-up view" of known tropical storms and hurricanes dating back to 1851.

The storm map offers an unusual perspective of the Earth from below, centered on Antarctica, with the rest of the planet unfurling around the southern continent like flower petals.

While the Caribbean is the clear global hot spot for tropical storm activity, the major southern hemisphere active zone is across Australia's north, with cyclones forming everywhere between Mozambique and Tahiti.

media_camera Detection has skyrocketed since satellite technology but mostly since we started logging storms in the eastern hemisphere. Image: John Nelson/IDV Solutions

Last year Far North Queensland copped its second big cyclone in a decade, with category five Yasi causing major destruction between Cairns and Townsville, five years after category four Larry had devastated Innisfail.

media_camera Port Hinchinbrook devastated by Cyclone Yasi, with millions of dollars worth of boats ruined by the Category 5 monster cyclone. Picture: Brian Cassey

Yasi caused more than $3.6 billion dollars of damage, the costliest tropical cyclone to hit Australia on record.

On Christmas Day 1974, Cyclone Tracy devastated Darwin, killing 71 people, and destroyed more than 70 per cent of Darwin's buildings, including 80 per cent of houses.

media_camera NOAA keep an archive of storm paths with wind speed, storm name, date, among other attributes, and are always updating and refining information for past events based on historical evidence and educated hunches. Image: John Nelson/IDV Solutions

Mapmaker John Nelson, mapping manager for data visualization company IDV Solutions, told Our Amazing Planet why the map's oddball point of view was the best way to tell the story of the data.

"When I put it onto a rectangular map it was neat looking, but a little bit disappointing," he said.

The unusual perspective beautiful showcases the curving paths the storms make across the world's oceans.

media_camera The proportionality of storm severity looks to be getting more consistent year to year with the benefit of more data. Image: John Nelson/IDV Solutions

It reveals that tropical storms abhor the Equator, and can never cross it.

Nelson's map employs US government data on tropical storms and hurricanes from 1851 through 2010.

media_camera Tropical Storm Isaac gained fresh muscle Sunday as it bore down on the Florida Keys, with forecasters warning it could grow into a dangerous Category 2 hurricane as it nears the northern Gulf Coast. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz)

A hurricane warning has been issued for New Orleans and nearby areas as Isaac churned toward the northern Gulf of Mexico coast, with sustained winds of 100km/h and likely to reach hurricane force later today.

US President Barack Obama has declared a state of emergency in Louisiana as Tropical Storm Isaac gathered strength and threatened New Orleans, seven years after it was pummeled by Hurricane Katrina.

Obama informed the Gulf Coast state's governor, Bobby Jindal, that he was taking the move to free up federal funds and aid, during a conference call with local officials preparing for the storm, expected to come ashore on Tuesday.

The president also convened a briefing with officials including Federal Emergency Management Agency administrator (FEMA) Craig Fugate, hours before Isaac was expected to become a Category One hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico.

media_camera A sign warning about Hurricane Isaac, in Key West, Florida. Isaac gained fresh muscle as it bore down on the Florida Keys, with forecasters warning it could grow into a dangerous Category 2 hurricane as it nears the northern Gulf Coast. (Alan Diaz)

FEMA, along with other government agencies, including the Department of Defense, has staged emergency supplies closer to areas expected to experience severe weather.

"The president directed Administrator Fugate to ensure that FEMA was prepared regardless of the ultimate strength and impact of the storm,'' the White House said in a statement.

media_camera More convential view of storms in Caribbean. Image: John Nelson/IDV Solutions

Isaac's approach, close to the seven-year anniversary of Katrina, which killed around 1,800 people, has sobering political overtones, as the presidency of George W. Bush was severely hit by his mishandling of the disaster.

Those memories also prompted the Republican Party to open and then suspend its convention in Tampa, Florida, which is meeting to nominate Mitt Romney as its White House candidate.

Obama's move allows the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA to coordinate all disaster relief and emergency efforts, in a bid to avoid a repeat of the confusion that hampered the Katrina relief effort.

In 2005 Hurricane Katrina caused extensive damage on America's Caribbean coast. Katrina was the costliest natural disaster in the history of the United States. At least 1,836 people died in the hurricane and subsequent floods, and damages exceeded US$81 billion.

Originally published as Hurricanes mapped as Isaac menaces