The influence of planetary wave dynamics on polar ozone photochemistry is examined using a three-dimensional model of the stratosphere and lower mesosphere. The model contains a comprehensive range of photochemical reactions and includes heterogeneous reactions and polar ozone chemistry. The model is forced at its lower boundary (316 mbar) with a specified wavenumber one geopotential height field. Idealized experiments are performed using the same zonally symmetric initial conditions but with different wave amplitudes at the lower boundary. The wave amplitudes are chosen to cover the range from a zonally symmetric integration, through typical southern hemisphere wave amplitudes to typical northern hemisphere springtime amplitudes. In each experiment the model is integrated for 100 days covering the winter and springtime period during which the Antarctic ozone hole is observed to develop and partially recover. The modeled ozone amounts over the polar region in these experiments show a considerable sensitivity to the planetary wave forcing. With small-amplitude forcing, substantial ozone depletion occurs and continues until the end of the integration (equivalent to early November in the southern hemisphere). For medium-amplitude forcing, substantial ozone destruction is followed by a recovery in the column amount after a time corresponding approximately to the middle of October. For the largest amplitude forcing, little ozone depletion occurs. These results are broadly consistent with the known phenomenology of polar ozone chemistry in both northern and southern hemispheres. An analysis of the mechanisms through which planetary wave amplitudes influence polar ozone chemistry in these experiments is presented. In particular, wave-induced mean descent over the whole polar region is identified as an important ingredient for determining the different behavior of polar ozone in the experiments. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1992