  Tidal transfer of angular momentum is expected to cause hot Jupiters to
spiral into their host stars. Although the timescale for orbital decay is very
uncertain, it should be faster for systems with larger and more evolved stars.
Indeed, it is well established that hot Jupiters are found less frequently
around subgiant stars than around main-sequence stars. However, the
interpretation of this finding has been ambiguous, because the subgiants are
also thought to be more massive than the F- and G-type stars that dominate the
main-sequence sample. Consequently it has been unclear whether the absence of
hot Jupiters is due to tidal destruction, or inhibited formation of those
planets around massive stars. Here we show that the Galactic space motions of
the planet-hosting subgiant stars demand that on average they be similar in
mass to the planet-hosting main-sequence F- and G-type stars. Therefore the two
samples are likely to differ only in age, and provide a glimpse of the same
exoplanet population both before and after tidal evolution. As a result, the
lack of hot Jupiters orbiting subgiants is clear evidence for their tidal
destruction. Questions remain, though, about the interpretation of other
reported differences between the planet populations around subgiants and
main-sequence stars, such as their period and eccentricity distributions and
overall occurrence rates.
