This repository contains the observational data and the parameter fields for the hydrological model which is used in the study by Imme Benedict et al., 2018: An evaluation of the importance of spatial resolution in a global climate and hydrological model based on the Rhine and Mississippi basin, Hydrology and Earth System Science. More specific, this repository contains the following datasets: • Precipitation over Europe from E-OBS: E-OBS dataset version 12.0 at 0.25° from 1985 until 2015 (30 years). We acknowledge the E-OBS dataset from the EU-FP6 project ENSEMBLES ({http://ensembles-eu.metoffice.com}) and the data providers in the ECA&D project ({http://www.ecad.eu}). Haylock, M.R., N. Hofstra, A.M.G. Klein Tank, E.J. Klok, P.D. Jones, M. New: A European daily high-resolution gridded dataset of surface temperature and precipitation. J. Geophys. Res (Atmospheres), 113, D20119, {https://doi.org/10.1029/2008JD010201}, 2008 • Precipitation over the USA from CPC: The Climate Prediciton Center (CPC) 0.25° Daily US Unified Gauge-Based precipitation dataset …