1. During a solar eclipse, the sequence in which different locations experience the total eclipse is indeed from east to west.
2. This is because as the Moon orbits the Earth, the shadow it casts on the Earth's surface moves in this direction.
3. At the beginning of the eclipse, the Moon is positioned between the Sun and the Earth, with its shadow falling first on the western regions of the planet.
4. In these areas, the Sun and the Moon appear to be in a straight line, marking the start of the total eclipse for those observers.
5. As time passes, the Moon moves eastward, and the Sun follows, causing the shadow to shift in the same direction.
6. Initially, the shadow moves relatively quickly due to the oblique angle at which the Moon's shadow strikes the Earth.
7. As the relative positions of the Moon and the Sun change, the shadow becomes more vertical, slowing down the pace of its movement.
8. Finally, as the shadow tilts again, the speed picks up once more.
9. The notion that the Moon's shadow moves faster than the Earth's rotation is a common misconception. The correct explanation should be based on the concept of the angular velocity.
10. The speed at which the Moon's shadow moves across the Earth's surface is determined by the difference between the Moon's orbital speed around the Earth and the Earth's rotational speed, not a simple comparison of absolute speeds.
