A storage cell was a component of Federation starships' bussard ramscoops. The storage cells were responsible for holding whatever interstellar material that had been collected by the ramscoops. In 2375, Commander Riker ordered the ramscoops of the USS Enterprise-E utilized to collect metreon gas in the area of space known as "the Briar Patch," while attempting to elude two pursuing Son'a battle cruisers. Subsequent to the storage cells reaching maximum capacity, Riker ordered the ramscoops released, leaving a cloud of the gas between the Enterprise and the Son'a vessels, which ignited upon being fired into by one of the pursuing ships, in a tactic that Lieutenant Commander La Forge dubbed "the Riker Maneuver." (Star Trek: Insurrection)